Rev.     James  F.  Haney 


P'OJ 


H^ 

-^/^^,  ^ 


A   Short    History   of 
Ireland 


By   CONSTANTIA  MAXWKLI.,   M.A. 

l^CTURJBR  IN  HiSTO&Y.  TElS^llY  COJW*eGS.  IWB1,IN. 


BDSTDM    COLLEGE   LIBRARY 
CHESTNUT  HILL,  MASS. 

New  York 
Frederick  A.  Stokes  Company 

4*ubiisher* 


PREFACE, 


My  endeavour  in  writing  this  little  book  has  been  to  present 
a  clear  and  impartial  account  of  the  chief  features  of  B-ish 
History.  In  view  of  the  notable  gaps  which  exist  in  the 
scientific  treatment  of  social  and  economic  questions,  I 
have  purposely  dealt  mainly  with  political  events.  I  have 
also  intentionally  neglected  the  important  subjects  of 
Celtic  mythology  and  literature,  as  being  beyond  the  scope 
of  an  elementary  historical  text  book. 

A  work  of  this  kind  is  necessarily  based  upon  secondary 
sources  ;  I  have,  therefore,  appended  a  short  list  of  those 
authorities  to  which  I  am  indebted. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTSH     I. 

EARLY     IRELAND. 
Section. 

1.  Ireland  and  the  Origins  of  the  Irish  Race 

2.  The  Tribes      

S.  St,  Patrick  and  the  Introduction  of.  Christianity   .. 
4.  The   Scandinavian   Invasion  , 


PAGE 


CHAPTER.    II. 

THB  nor:man  invasion  and  settlemijnt. 

1.  The  Causes  of  the  Invasion 

2.  The  Norman  Expeditions '     ... 

3.  Norman  Pvule  in  Ireland     ... 


14 
i6 


CHAPTER     III. 

B    DECLINE    OF    ENGLISH    POWER    AND    ADVANCE  OP 
THE   CELTS. 

1.  The  State  of  Ireland  from  the  Thirteenth  to  the  Fifteenth 

Centuries              ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...  19 

2.  The  Invasion  of  Edward  Bruce      22 

3.  The  Statute  of  Kilkenny 23 

4.  The  Yorkists  in  Ireland .    24 

o.  Poynings'  Law           ...  25 

0.  The  Geraldine  Supremacy 27 


CHAPTER     IV. 

TriE  TUDOR  CONQUEST  AND  THE  PLANTATION  01 

1.  A  New  EngHsh  PoHcy  in  Ireland  ... 

2.  Risings  of  the  Native  Chiefs  ., 

3.  The  Plantations 

4.  The  Reformation  in  Ireland  


ULSl  ER: 

...        31 

34 

...       44 

49 


CHAPTER     V. 

:iE   REBELLION    pF    1641    AND    THE   CROilWELLIAN 
v'^ETTLEMENT. 

1.  The  Introduction  of  EngHsh  Ideas 

2.  The  Graces      

3.  The  Government  of  Weutworth     ... 

4.  .The   Rebellion  of   1041 

6.  Cromwell  and  the  Act  of  Settleuient 


54 

57 
58 
61 
65 


▼1. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER     YT. 

THE  WAR  OP  THE  REVOT.UTION. 
Section 

1.  The  Restoration  of  the  Stuarts    ... 

2.  The   English    ReTolution — Rival   Parties. 

3.  The   Irish   Parliament   of    16S9      ... 

4,.  The  Siege  of  I^ondonderry 

5.  The  Battle  of  the  Boyae 

•  6.  The  End  of  the  War  and  the  Treaty  of  Ivimerick.., 


PAGJt 
70 

73 
7S 

78 
80 


CHAPTER     VII. 

^'^  IREI.AND    UNDER   THE    OLD    COLONIAL   SYSTEM— THE 
PERIOD  O^  PROTESTANT  ASCENDANCY. 

1.  The  Penal  Laws        

2.  Commercial  Restnctions      

3.  The  Subordination  of  the  Irish  Parliament 

4.  State  of  the  Countrr  

6.  Movements  for  Reform        

6.  Grattan's  Parliament  

7.  The  Rebellion  of   1798        

■8.  The  Union      

CHAPTES     ?ni. 

IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION. 

^-  1.  Cathohc  Emancipation         

.  2.  The  Land  Question 

3.  Home  Rule 


91 

93 
96 

10 1 

104 
loS 

113 


116 
119 

125 


LIST     OF     MAPS. 

I.  Early  Ireland  

II.  Ireland  in  the  XHI.   Century      ... 

TTT.  Ireland  in  the  XV.  Century 

IV.  The  Tudor  and  Stuart  Plantations 

Y.  The  CromweUian  Settlement 


LIST     OF 

I.  The  Battle  of  Clontarf 
II.  The  Battle  of  the  Boyne    . 


PLANS. 


A  SHORT  LIST  OF  AUTHORITIES 


12 

30 

68 


82 


History   of  Ireland. 


CHAPTER   I. 
EARLY   IRELAND, 


I      IRELAND  AND  THE  ORIGINS  OF  THE 
IRISH  RACE. 

The  Geographical  Position  of  a  country  has  always  some 
influence  upon  its  history,  and  this  is  especially  true  of 
that  great  group  of  islands  which  lies  to  the  north-west 
of  Europe,  of  which  Ireland  forms  part.  Owing  to  the 
isolated  position  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  in  the 
Western  sea  we  have  been  unaffected  by  many  of  the 
movements  and  forces  which  have  played  an  important 
part  on  the  Continent.  Our  problems  have  often  been 
peculiar  to  ourselves,  and  so  our  development  has  been 
different  from  that  of  othtr  nations.  If  Ireland  had  been 
placed  an  island  like  Iceland,  entirely  apart,  she  too  would 
have  had  a  separate  and  original  development ;  but  being, 
as  she  is,  a  near  neighbour  of  England,  the  history  of  the 
two  countries  has  necessarily  been  closely  connected. 
Though  they  have  not  always  recognised  the  fact,  their 
nearness  has  given  them  a  common  fortune,  the  safety 
and  well-being  of  the  one  being  bound  up  with  the  safety 
and  well-being  of  the  other.  Ireland,  however,  lies  just 
far  enough  away  to  have  made  a  perfect  union  between 
the  two  countries  extremely  difficult,  and  one  of  the  main 
problems  of  British  history  has  been  to  find  the  best 
method  of  so  far  uniting  the  two  islands  as  to  secure  the 
mutual  advantage  of  each. 

B 


2  EARLY    IRELAND. 

The  Natural  Features  of  Ireland  itself  have  been  of 
great  importance  in  her  history.  The  ring  of  mountains 
round  the  coast,  for  instance,  has  prevented  free  com- 
munication with  the  interior,  and  so  has  made  commercial 
development  difficult.  Again,  the  great  number  of  rivers, 
mountains  and  lakes,  and  the  way  in  which  they  are  placed, 
have  intersected  the  country  to  such  a  degree  that  its 
different  parts  are  very  much  cut  off  from  one  another. 
This  has  made  an  invader's  task  always  extremely  difficult, 
and  has  greatly  aided  the  natives  in  their  methods  of 
defence.  For  this  reason,  too,  the  Irish,  like  the  ancient 
Greeks,  who  were  similarly  situated,  have  always  tended 
to  gather  together  in  isolated  groups  like  separate  little 
peoples,  and  this  partly  accounts  for  the  fact  that  we  have 
never,  as  a  people,  shown  a  sustained  spirit  of  patriotism, 
or  been  able  to  form  a  really  firm  and  united  nation. 

The  Original  Inhabitants  of  Ireland  were  a  nameless  race, 
of  which  we  know  little,  except  that  they  were  probably 
of  Aegean  origin.  They  have  left  their  traces  all  over 
the  country  in  those  great  stone  monuments  known  as 
'  Cromlechs,'  '  Dolmens,'  '  Menhirs,'  and  so  forth, 
which  are  also  to  be  found  in  the  rest  of  Western  Europe. 
They  gradually  gave  way  before  other  invaders  with 
whom  they  mingled.  The  chief  of  these  invaders  of 
whom  we  know  anything  definite  were  the  Celts.  The 
Celts  formed  part  of  the  great  Aryan  race  to  which  most 
of  the  European  peoples  belong.  They  came  originally 
from  the  Danube,  and  gradually  spread  over  Central 
Europe,  reaching  the  height  of  their  power  about  300  years 
before  Christ.  They  soon  broke  up,  however,  before  the 
force  of  Rome  and  the  more  vigorous  Teutonic  races 
from  the  North,  and  their  numerous  tribes  drifted  in 
successive  waves  mostly  to  the  west,  where  they  found  a 
permanent  resting-place.  In  England  they  were  driven 
northwards    to    the    Scottish    Highlands   and   westwards 


EARLY    IRELAND.  3 

to  the  mountains  of  Wales,  but  in  Ireland,  which  was 
never  subjugated  or  even  visited  by  the  Romans,  they 
were  left  unmolested. 

According  to  the  old  Irish  legends,  which  must  have  been 
grounded  on  some  sort  of  fact,  Ireland  was  invaded  and 
colonised  by  five  different  peoples :  the  Parthalonians, 
the  Nemedians,  the  Firbolgs,  the  Dedannans,  and  the 
Milesians.  The  stories  about  the  first  three  were  probably 
meant  to  explain  the  existence  of  the  various  non-Aryan 
peoples  which  were  found  in  subjection  in  historical 
times — that  is  to  say,  they  represent  the  very  earliest 
migrations  to  Ireland,  of  which  very  little  is  known.  The 
legend  of  the  Dedannans  was  perhaps  invented  after  the 
introduction  of  Christianity  to  explain  the  origin  of  the 
pagan  deities  and  fairy  people  reverenced  by  the  earlier 
inhabitants,*  while  the  coming  of  the  Milesians  seems  to  have 
been  based  upon  the  various  Celtic  invasions  which,  unlike 
the  others,  come  within  the  times  of  more  certain  know- 
ledge. Just  as  the  first  colonists  gradually  became  merged 
in  the  Celts,  who  thenceforth  formed  the  dominant  element 
in  the  Irish  people,  so  the  Celts  in  later  times  became 
blended  with  the  large  numbers  of  Norman,  English  and 
Scottish  settlers  who  came  over  to  Ireland  at  different 
periods.  Thus  the  modem  Irish,  like  other  European 
peoples,  are  descended  from  a  mixture  of  many  races. 

2.     THE  TRIBES. 

The  Irish  were  the  only  branch  of  the  Celts  who  did 
not  come  into  contact  with  Rome  ;  they  were  thus  ignorant 
of  the  great  Roman  ideas  of  law  and  the  State  which 
moulded  the  barbarian  invaders  of  the  Empire  into  the 
modem    nations    of    Europe.     Being    left    to    themselves 

•  This  is  indicated  by  the  meaning  oi  the  name  Tuaiha  De  Danann 
or  '  tribes  of  the  goddess  Danu.' 


4  EARLY   IRELAND. 

they  alone  retained  those  primitive  customs  which  had 
been  common  to  all  Aryan  peoples  in  very  early  times. 
Thus  the  basis  of  the  Irish  social  system  was  the  tribe. 

The  Tribe  was  formed  of  a  number  of  families  or  clans, 
all  descended,  or  supposed  to  be  descended,  from  some 
common  ancestor,  and  all  bound  together  by  the  same 
customs.  At  the  head  of  the  tribe  was  the  King  or  Chief 
(ri),  who  was  elected  by  the  p^£le  either  for  his  strength, 
wealth  or  wisdom,  or  as  the  most  suitable  leader  in  times 
of  war.  The  chief  had  certain  of  the  tribe  lands  set  apart 
for  his  own  use,  and  he  also  exacted  tributes  in  cattle  and 
services  from  the  people,  and  lent  them  cattle  on  hire^C 
Next  in  importance  to  the  chief  came  the  land-owning 
nobles  (flaiths),  and  below  them  were  the  freemenl(^  Some 
of  these  owned  property  ;  those  who  did  not  were  of  lesser 
importance,  yet  had  some  share  in  the  common  lands  of 
the  tribe.  The  lowest  social  grade  was  that  of  the  slaves 
(fudirs),  whohad  no  rights  or  property  at  all  ;  these  were 
generally  men  of  subject  races  or  had  been  taken  captive 
in  war.  As  there  was  no  money,  the  wealth  of  the  tribe 
was  based  upon  the  number  of  heads  of  cattle  which  it 
possessed,  and  sheep,  pigs,  and  cows  were  also  used  as  a 
medium  of  exchange  and  in  the  payment  of  tribute. 

The  ancient  tribes  are  supposed  to  have  grouped  them- 
selves together  under  live  Provincial  Kings,  who  ruled 
over  the  five  provinces  of  Ulster,  Leinster,  Munster^ 
Connaught,  and  Meath,  into  which  early  Ireland  was 
divided.  An  Ard-ri,  or  over  King,  was  supposed  to  preside 
over  them  all,  exacting  a  tribute  and  some  military  service 
from  each.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  scale  of  authority 
among  the  chiefs  and  kings  was  never  exactly  the  same, 
for  the  tribes  were  always  at  war,  and  sometimes  one 
tribe  got  the  upper  hand  and  sometimes  another. 

The  judicial  functions  of  the  tribe  were  exercised  by  a 
class   of  hereditary  and   professional   la\vyers   and  judges 


EARLY   IRELAND.  5 

called  Brehons.  They  interpreted  the  tribal  customs 
to  the  people,  and  built  up  a  collection  of  rules,  some  of 
which  are  contained  in  the  old  law  books,  such  as  the  '  Book 
of  Aicill,*  and  the  *  Senchus  Mor,'  both  of  which  still 
exist.  All  notions  of  tribal  justice  seem  to  have  been  very 
primitive.  The  punishment  for  murder,  for  instance, 
consisted  only  in  the  payment  of  *  erics,'  or  fines,  which 
varied  according  to  the  rank  and  importance  of  the 
murdered  man.  The  Brehons  decided  on  the  amount 
which  had  to  be  paid,  but  they  had  no  power  to  enforce 
their  judgments,  save  the  general  public  opinion  of  the 
tribe. 

The  Irish  at  this  time  were  pagans.  They  worshipped 
the  fire  and  sun  and  many  natural  objects  such  as  stones 
and  wells,  besides  a  host  of  gods,  idols  and  fairies.  The 
Druids  were  not  actually  priests,  but  rather  the  tribal 
wdzard  men.  They  alone  held  the  keys  of  supernatural 
learning  and  magical  arts,  and  as  all  early  peoples  are 
extremely  credulous,  they  possessed  a  great  deal  of 
influence. 

The  manner  of  living  of  the  ancient  Irish  was  simple  and 
primitive  ;  they  have  left  no  architectural  remains,  their 
houses  being  built  of  mud  and  wood,  and  their  palaces, 
such  as  that  of  the  Ard-ri  at  Tara,  being  fortified  wdth 
earthen  mounds.  They  used  no  cavalry  in  war,  though 
possessing  many  ponies  for  transport,  their  main  arm 
being  the  '  kern,*  a  light-armed  foot-soldier  without 
defensive  armour,  who  was  no  match  later  on  for  the  w'ell- 
equipped  Danish  or  Norman  invaders.  Though  they 
excelled  in  harp-playing  and  in  the  working  of  precious 
metals,  there  is  no  e^ddence  of  any  skill  in  the  finer  arts 
of  sculpture  or  painting.  Their  methods  of  agriculture 
were  very  rude,  and  the  custom  of  *  gavelkind,'  by  which 
a  constant  sub-division  of  the  tribe  lands  took  place,  made 
agricultural  progress  impossible.     They  carried  on  some 


6  EARLY   IRELAND. 

trade  with  the  Continent  in  slaves,  ore,  and  ornamental 
articles,  but,  on  the  whole,  their  contact  with  the  rest  of 
Europe  was  slight. 

The  over-kingship  gradually  became  hereditary  in  the 
Hy-Niall  line,  from  whom  are  descended  the  chiefs  of  the 
O'Neills,  and  at  the  time  when  the  power  of  the  Romans 
had  declined  in  Britain,  Niall  of  the  Nine  Hostages  (379- 
405  A.D.)  was  so  powerful  that  he  led  a  number  of  plun- 
dering expeditions  against  Scotland  and  Wales.  As  a 
rule,  however,  there  was  no  central  authority  strong  enough 
to  hold  the  country  together  ;  the  tribes  were  always  at 
war,  and  Ireland  in  a  state  of  turmoil.  In  England  each 
successive  invader — the  Roman,  English,  Danish,  and 
Norman,  absorbed  and  added  something  of  value  to  the 
preceding  civilization.  In  Ireland,  on  the  contrary, 
largely  owing  to  the  difficulty  of  effecting  a  conquest, 
the  Danes  seldom  mingled  with  the  native  population 
outside  the  cities  they  built,  and  after  the  Norman  invasion 
the  English  colonists  held  aloof  from  the  tribes  in  order  to 
preserve  their  own  customs  and  government.  Thus 
Celtic  civilization  and  institutions,  untouched  as  they 
were  by  outside  influences,  continued  in  Ireland  right 
down  to  the  sixteenth  century,  when  English  laws  and 
customs  were  imposed  upon  the  country  after  the  wars 
of  Elizabeth 

3.     ST.  PATRICK  AND  THE  INTRODUCTION 
OF  CHRISTIANITY. 

St.  Patrick  was  probably  born  about  389  a.d.  perhaps  at 
a  small  place  called  Bannaventa,  near  the  Severn.  His  family 
was  Christian,  and  his  father  was  a  man  of  recognised 
position  and  a  Roman  official.  When  he  was  sixteen  years 
old  some  Irish  Celts  or  Gaels  raided  his  native  town,  and 
he  was  carried  away  as  a  slave  to  serve  an  Irish  master 


EARLY   IRELAND.  7 

in  Connaught.*  At  the  end  of  six  years  he  managed  to 
escape,  and  reaching  the  coast  of  Wicklow,  he  joined  a 
trading  ship  bound  for  Gaul.  Making  his  way  to  the 
•South  of  France  on  foot,  he  entered  the  Monastery  of 
Lerins,  and  after  he  had  received  a  reUgious  training 
he  returned  to  his  old  home  in  Britain.  He  here  had  a 
vision,  in  v/hich  a  voice  summoned  him  to  Ireland,  urging 
him  to  convert  the  people  to  Christianity,  and  as  during 
his  years  of  slavery  he  had  gained  a  good  knowledge  of  the 
Irish  language  and  customs,  he  was  led  to  adopt  a  mis- 
sionary career. 

He  was  consecrated  bishop  in  432  a.d.,  and  setting  out 
with  a  company  of  fellow  workers,  he  landed  in  the  north. 
Though  he  was  bitterly  opposed  by  the  Druids,  especially 
at  the  court  of  Loigaire  the  Ard-ri,  he  seems  to  have  won 
an  instant  success.  A  few  Christian  missionaries  had 
already  prepared  the  way  for  his  labours,  especially  in 
Leinster.  Many  of  the  Irish  chiefs,  to  whom  he  habitually 
first  addressed  himself,  were  converted  to  the  new  faith, 
and  even  when,  as  in  the  case  of  Loigaire,  they  remained 
pagan  to  the  end,  made  no  persistent  opposition  to  his 
teaching.  His  enthusiasm,  his  courage,  and  a  wise  deter- 
mination not  needlessly  to  interfere  with  pagan  ceremonies 
and  customs,  overcame  all  opposition  and  won  over  the 
people  to  the  new  religion.  He  founded  churches  and 
monasteries  in  many  parts  of  Ireland,  after  the  model 
of  those  in  Europe,  with  Armagh  as  the  central  See  ;  and 
from  his  time  Ireland  has  taken  her  place  in  universal 
Christendom. 

After  his  death,  however,  the  Irish  Church  lost  touch 
with  the  Continent  and  developed  on  its  own  lines.  The 
monasteries  separated  like  the  tribes,  the  churches  paid 

*  Some  say  Antrim.  It  is  difficult  in  tliese  matters  to  distinguish 
history  from  legend,  but  see  the  evidence  collected  by  Professor 
Bury  upon  this  and  other  controversial  points. 


8  EARLY   IRELAND. 

little  attention  to  the  claims  of  Armagh,  and,  on  account 
of  the  difficulty  of  communication,  Rome  could  not  exercise 
a  constant  supervision.  Though  many  of  the  Irish  clergy 
laboured  on  the  Continent  from  the  sixth  century,  a  still 
greater  number  fled  thither  after  the  Danish  invasion. 
Possibly  it  was  as  a  result  of  this  that  a  closer  conformity 
with  Roman  laws  and  customs  was  enforced  by  a  Council 
held  at  Kells  in  1152  a.d. 

It  was  during  this  period  of  ecclesiastical  independence 
in  the  centuries  which  preceded  the  Danish  invasions 
that  Ireland  became  the  scene  of  a  very  remarkable 
religious  movement.  St.  Patrick  had  introduced  the 
knowledge  of  Latin  into  Ireland,  and  so  had  made  possible 
the  study  of  classical  literature  in  the  monasteries.  Thus 
while  the  rest  of  Europe  was  being  overrun  by  the  Goths, 
Huns  and  other  barbarians  in  the  fifth  century,  many 
scholars  fled  to  Ireland  as  an  asylum,  especially  from 
Gaul.  These  men,  who  could  find  no  peace  to  study  at 
home,  brought  with  them  their  books  and  their  learning, 
and  they  taught  the  Irish  monks  the  art  of  copying  manu- 
scripts, and  of  illuminating  them  in  colours.  Monasteries, 
schools  and  colleges  sprang  up  everywhere,  and  a  great 
missionary  movement  also  began.  Numbers  of  monks 
left  the  country  to  spread  Irish  learning  abroad,  and  to 
make  fresh  converts  to  the  Christian  faith.  Among 
the  most  celebrated  of  these  was  St.  Columba,  who  con- 
verted the  Picts  of  Scotland,  and  founded  the  famous 
monastery  of  lona  ;  St.  Gall,  who  established  a  monastery 
in  Switzerland  ;  St.  Columbanus,  who  preached  in  Gaul, 
and  John  Scotus  Erigena,  who  taught  in  Paris,  and  was 
the  most  distinguished  scholar  of  his  time. 

This  was  also  the  period  of  the  best  artistic  work  which 
has   ever   been   done   in    Ireland.     Numbers   of  crosses, 


EARLY   IRELAND.  9 

crosiers,  bells  and  ornaments  were  beautifully  worked  and 
decorated,  and  manuscripts  were  illuminated  and  covered 
with  the  most  intricate  and  wonderful  designs.  Among 
the  best  known  of  these  art  treasures  are  the  Book  of  Kelts, 
the  Cross  of  Cong,  the  Ardagh  Chalice,  and  the  Shrine 
of  St.  Patrick's  Bell,  all  of  which  still  exist  and  are  preserved 
in  Dublin. 

Since  the  monasteries  with  their  treasures  were  the 
wealthiest  centres  in  Ireland,  the  Danes  naturally  made 
them  their  special  object  of  attack.  Ireland  became  no 
longer  a  peaceful  refuge  for  scholars  ;  the  inmates  of  the 
monasteries  were  scattered,  and  art  and  learning  rapidly 
declined. 


4.    THE  SCANDINAVIAN  INVASION. 

The  Viking  Movement  took  place  in  Western  Europe 
from  the  eighth  to  the  tenth  centuries.  The  Vikings  or 
Norsemen  from  Scandinavia  raided  the  coasts  in  search  of 
plunder  and  captives,  sacked  towns  and  monasteries,  and 
gradually  founded  colonies  and  settlements.  At  the 
height  of  the  movement  they  had  established  their  rule 
in  parts  of  England,  Ireland,  and  Russia,  and  also  in  Nor- 
mandy and  the  Isle  of  Man.  After  the  tenth  century, 
owing  to  the  almost  universal  rise  of  national  kings  who  led 
their  peoples  in  a  common  movement  against  them,  their 
power  began  to  decline. 

They  first  appeared  off  the  Irish  coast  in  795  A.D.,  when 
they  plundered  the  church  on  the  island  of  Lambay,  and 
in  succeeding  years  they  ravaged  practically  the  whole 
country.  In  832  a.d.  they  began  to  act  in  concert  and  to 
aim  at  the  foundation  of  some  permanent  colony,  and  under 
their  chief,  Turgesius,  they  erected  a  kingdom  in  the  north, 
with  Armagh  as  its  capital.     In  845   a.d.  this  chief  was 


10  EARLY   IRELAND. 

captured  by  the  Irish  and  drowned  in  Lough  Owel  by 
order  of  the  King  of  Meath.  This  did  not  put  a  stop, 
however,  to  the  Danish  advance.  The  Irish  never  united 
to  make  a  steady  resistance,  and  the  Danes,  with  their 
better  arms,  easily  overcame  the  primitive  Irish  soldiers. 
Nevertheless,  the  tribal  organisation  of  the  Irish  made  their 
total  subjection  impossible ;  there  was  no  central  power 
to  be  finally  defeated,  and  as  soon  as  one  tribe  was  subdued 
another  sprang  up  to  fight  in  its  place.  Thus,  while 
in  England  the  Danes  won  definite  battles  and  made 
permanent  settlements,  mingUng  with  the  people,  in  Ireland 
they  always  remained  in  the  position  of  foreigners,  never 
penetrating  to  the  interior  of  the  country,  but  maintaining 
garrisons  on  the  coast. 

It  was  the  Danes  who  first  built  towns  in  Ireland  and 
who  carried  on  a  really  extensive  trade.  They  founded 
Dublin  in  852 — ^then  Wexford,  Waterford,  Limerick,  and 
Cork. 

At  the  end  of  the  tenth  century  an  Irish  chieftain  arose 
to  champion  and  unite  the  tribes  against  the  Danes.  The 
Munster  tribe  of  the  Dalcassians,  under  the  leadership  of 
two  brothers,  defeated  the  Limerick  Danes  near  Tippe- 
rary  at  the  Battle  of  Sulchoit  in  968  A.D.,  and  then  wrested 
Limerick  from  their  grasp.  On  the  death  of  the  elder 
brother,  the  younger,  named  Brian  Boru,  became  King 
of  Munster.  He  soon  turned  against  the  King  of  Leinster, 
who  had  become  the  ally  of  the  Dublin  Danes,  and  defeated 
him  at  the  Battle  of  Glenmama  in  County  Wicklow. 
Having  thus  grown  very  powerful,  he  next  attacked  Malachi, 
the  King  of  Meath,  took  from  him  the  over-lordship  of  all 
the  tribes,  and  became  Ard-ri  in  IC02  a.d. 

Brian's  rule  over  the  tribes  was  very  remarkable  ;  he 
not  only  managed  to  keep  order  by  hanging  robbers  and 
thieves,  and  giving  justice  to  all,  but  he  was  a  patron  of 
learning,    rewarding   scholars,    and    sending   for    precious 


EARLY   IRELAND.  H 

books  beyond  the  seas.  He  also  built  churches*  and 
forts  and  tried  to  open  up  the  country  with  bridges  and 
roads.  *  He  was  not  a  stone  in  the  place  of  an  egg,'  says 
the  old  Irish  annalist  admiringly,  *  but  he  was  a  hero  in 
the  place  of  a  hero.' 

After  about  twelve  years  of  peaceful  rule  the  provincial 
chiefs  began  to  grow  restless.  The  King  of  Leinster  threw 
off  his  allegiance,  and,  making  another  alliance  with  the 
Dublin  Danes,  decided  to  engage  Brian  in  battle.  They 
assembled  a  large  fleet  and  summoned  great  Viking  leaders 
to  their  aid  from  all  parts.  Brian  then  mustered  his  men 
from  Munster,  Connaught  and  Meath,  and  advanced 
towards    DubHn.     The    Battle    of    Clontarf,    which    was 


BATTLE  OF  CLONTARF 


•^'^  ^-^^    N^»,s 


<^^ 


^^\0<^      loueuN^^^jIglfg^i 


fought  on  the  plain  of  Dublin,  commenced  at  sunrise  on 
the  23rd  April,  1014,  and  lasted  until  evening.  It  began 
with  a  single  combat  between  two  champions,  and  then  the 
battalions  on  each,  side  made  a  furious  onslaught  upon 
each  other.  The  Dublin  Danes  were  gradually  over- 
powered by  the  men  of  Connaught,  and  driven  towards 
the  wattle  bridge,  which  was  the  only  one  at  that  time 

•  Brian  visited  Armagh,  as  is  shewn  by  his  decree  recognising  the 
supremacy  of  the  See,  written  in  the  Book  of  Armagh  (MS.  gtb 
century)  in  1004  a.d.  The  entry  is  made  by  his  secretary  in  con- 
spectu  Briain,  imperatoris  Scotorum  (in  the  presence  of  Brian,  ard-ri 
of  the  Irish). 


12 


EARLY   IRELAND. 


over  the  river.  Here  a  tremendous  slaughter  of  them 
took  place.  The  rest  of  the  Danes,  cut  off  from  Dublin 
by  the  Irish  occupation  of  the  bridge,  were  forced  into 


the  sea,  where  they  found  that  the  tide  had  carried  their 
boats  out  of  reach.  Thus  many  of  them  were  drowned. 
Though  the  Irish  had  gained  a  great  victory,  they  lost 


EARLY   IRELAND.  1 3 

their  old  King  Brian,  for  he  was  killed  as  he  was  lying 
in  his  tent  by  a  Danish  fugitive. 

This  battle  was  the  severest  defeat  ever  sustained  by  the 
Danes,  and  it  was  of  the  greatest  importance — ^first,  because 
it  ensured  the  triumph  of  Christianity,  and,  secondly, 
because  from  henceforth  the  Vikings  were  so  disheartened 
that  their  invasions  became  less  frequent,  and  they  gave 
up  all  idea  of  extensive  settlements.  Had  they  been 
victorious  at  Clontarf  they  would  have  estabUshed  a  king- 
dom in  Ireland,  and  so  might  have  welded  the  country 
together.  As  it  was,  their  occupation  had  fostered  Irish 
town  hfe  and  laid  the  foimdations  of  that  Irish  trade  which 
brought  Ireland  into  contact  with  the  rest  of  Europe  in 
the  eleventh  and  twelfth  centuries.  The  Danes,  though 
never  again  dangerous,  remained  in  their  settlements  till 
the  coming  of  the  Normans,  when  they  either  left  Ireland 
or  mingled  with  the  rest  of  the  population. 

The  death  of  Brian  was  a  terrible  misfortune.  The 
supremacy  of  his  tribe  of  the  Dalcassian^  was  lost;  the 
other  tribes  continued  their  strife,  and  Ireiand  relapsed 
into  a  state  of  anarchy. 


14  THB  NORMAN   INVASION. 

CHAPTER  II. 
THE  NORMAN  INVASION  AND  SETTLEMENT. 


I.    THE  CAUSES  OF  THE  INVASION. 

The  Normans,  or  descendants  of  those  Vikings  who  had 
settled  in  Northern  France,  are  one  of  the  great  peoples 
of  history.  Not  only  were  they  distinguished  by  their 
vigour  and  their  conquests,  but  also  for  their  great  ability 
in  matters  of  government.  The  eleventh  century  was 
the  period  of  their  greatest  activity.  They  then  built  up 
their  Duchy  of  Normandy,  undertook  the  conquest  of 
England,  Sicily,  and  Southern  Italy,  and  took  a  prominent 
part  in  the  Crusades. 

The  main  purpose  of  the  Norman  Kings  in  their  rule 
over  the  English  was  to  build  up  a  firm  and  united  kingdom, 
and  accordingly  they  maintained  their  authority  with  great 
strictness  over  all  classes  and  over  every  part  of  the  country. 
The  conquest  of  England  itself  was  followed  by  a  lengthy 
struggle  with  Wales,  and  when  the  Irish  aided  the  Welsh 
rebels  and  harboured  others  discontented  with  Norman 
rule,  the  subjection  of  Ireland  also  became  necessary  to 
complete  those  conquests  which  had  already  been  made. 
The  Popes  were  also  anxious  for  a  conquest  which  might 
put  an  end  to  the  abuses  existing  in  the  Irish  Church,  and 
Henry  II.,  it  is  said,  had  obtained  the  famous  Bull 
*  Laudabiliter,*  which  gave  the  Papal  sanction  for  an 
invasion. 

It  was  the  confusion  which  reigned  in  Ireland  itself 
which  gave  the  Normans  a  direct  pretext  for   an  expe- 


THE  NORMAN   INVASION.  15 

dition.  Dermot  MacMurrough,  the  King  of  Leinster, 
being  expelled  by  his  rivals  in  11 66  a.d.,  appealed  to 
Henry  II.  for  aid.  Henry  was  in  France  at  the  time  and 
could  not  come  to  Ireland,  so  he  gave  Dermot  permission 
to  raise  allies  for  his  cause.  The  chief  of  the  adventurers 
who  promised  help  were  the  Norman- Welsh  knights, 
Robert  Fitzstephen  and  Maurice  Fitzgerald,  the  ancestors 
of  the  Geraldines,  and  Richard  de  Clare,  Earl  of  Pembroke, 
who  is  generally  known  by  his  nickname  of  Strongbow.  To 
the  first  two  Dermot  promised  the  town  of  Wexford,  then 
in  possession  of  the  Danes,  while  to  Strongbow  he  promised 
his  daughter  and  the  succession  to  his  kingdom. 

2.    THE  NORMAN  EXPEDITIONS,   1169-1171    a.d. 

In  May,  1 169,  Fitzstephen  and  Maurice  de  Prendergast, 
another  Norman  adventurer,  landed  near  Wexford  v/ith 
120  mail-clad  horsemen  and  about  400  archers  armed  with 
the  longbow.  They  soon  drove  out  the  Danes  and  took  over 
the  town  in  accordance  with  Dermot's  promise.  In  August, 
1 1 70,  Strongbow  arrived  with  200  knights  and  1,000  foot- 
soldiers,  and  was  joined  by  Maurice  Fitzgerald  and  Raymond 
le  Gros.  Dermot,  by  this  time,  with  the  aid  of  his  allies, 
had  regained  his  kingdom  of  Leinster  and  come  to  terms 
with  Roderick  O'Connor,  the  Ard-ri.  The  Irish  chieftains, 
having  arranged  their  affairs,  now  secretly  wished  for  the 
departure  of  the  Normans,  who  had  no  intention,  however, 
of  leaving  the  country  before  they  had  gained  something 
definite.  Strongbow,  after  the  fall  of  Waterford,  claimed 
Dermot's  daughter  Eva  in  marriage,  and  it  was  determined 
to  attack  the  rest  of  the  Danish  coast  towns,  as  these  were 
the  keys  to  the  rest  of  the  country.  On  the  21st  of  Sep- 
tember Dublin  was  captured,  and  the  Danish  inhabitants 
took  to  their  ships 

Henry  II.  was  now  alarmed  by  the  success  of  his  vassals, 
and    especially    by    the    position    which    Strongbow   was 


1 6  THE  NORMAN  INVASION. 

making  for  himself.  He  had  no  objection  to  a  mere  free- 
booting  expedition,  but  he  did  not  wish  for  a  conquest 
carried  out  by  the  adventurers  for  their  own  advantage, 
nor  did  he  desire  the  erection  of  an  independent  Irish 
kingdom.  In  October,  1 171 ,  therefore,  he  landed  in  Water- 
ford  with  a  fleet  of  400  ships  and  a  force  of  4,000  men, 
with  which  he  proceeded  to  Dublin.  The  native  Irish 
were  greatly  impressed  by  the  splendour  and  numbers 
of  the  Norman  forces,  and  in  the  skirmishes  which  had 
already  taken  place  it  was  easily  seen  that  their  stones, 
javelins,  and  battleaxes  and  primitive  methods  of  warfare 
were  of  little  use  against  Norman  discipline  and  Norman 
coats  of  mail.  Henry  never  had  to  draw  sword  or  bow  ; 
and  nearly  all  the  Celtic  chieftains  made  their  submission 
and  paid  formal  homage  to  the  English  King. 

3.    NORMAN    RULE    IN    IRELAND. 

Henry  would  have  remained  in  Ireland  to  secure  his 
own  power  and  to  effect  a  complete  conquest,  but  this 
was  at  present  impossible,  as  he  was  not  only  engaged  in 
wars  with  France  and  Wales,  but  was  in  the  midst  of  a 
contest  with  some  of  his  own  subjects  and  with  the  Pope. 
He  had,  therefore,  to  leave  the  further  subjection  of  the 
country  and  its  final  settlement  in  the  hands  of  the  original 
adventurers,  whose  obedience,  however,  he  determined 
to  secure  by  binding  them  under  the  feudal  system  of 
England.  That  is  to  say,  he  only  granted  them  offices 
and  lands  on  condition  that  they  rendered  him  military 
services  when  required,  and  feudal  dues,  and  also  definitely 
recognised  his  suzerainty.  He  appointed  the  Norman 
Hugh  de  Lacy  as  Chief  Governor  (Justiciar)  and  Viceroy 
to  act  in  his  absence,  and  he  also  granted  him  the  lands 
of  Meath.  Leinster  was  given  to  Strongbow.  John  de 
Courcy  received  the  lordship   of  Ulster  ;    Cork  and  the 


THE  NORMAN   INVASION.  17 

surrounding  country  were  granted  to  Miles  de  Cogan  and 
Robert  Fitzstephen,  while  the  original  grants  in  Wexford 
to  Fitzstephen  and  Maurice  Fitzgerald  were  confirmed. 

Henry  had  thus  secured  the  allegiance,  such  as  it  was^ 
of  both  his  Norman  vassals  and  of  the  Irish  chiefs.  He 
now  gained  over  the  Irish  clergy  by  summoning  a  great 
Council  at  Cashel,  where  he  promised  them  certain  privi- 
leges.    In  April,  1172,  he  returned  to  England. 

From  this  time  forward  the  Normans  continued  to  win 
lands  from  the  tribesmen  and  to  cover  the  country  with  their 
castles,  so  that  by  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century  nearly 
two-thirds  of  Ireland  had  passed  under  Norman  rule. 
Shires  were  created,  law  courts  on  the  English  model  were 
established,  and  there  was  a  Viceroy  at  Dublin  Castle, 
who  ruled  with  the  aid  of  a  Great  Council. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  this  Norman  occupation 
was  an  illegal  one  in  the  eyes  of  the  Irish.  Henry  11. 
had  no  right  to  the  country  save  that  of  conquest,  and  even 
though  the  chiefs  had  temporarily  submitted  to  him  out 
of  fear,  had  surrendered  their  lands  and  had  received  them 
back  again  as  feudal  vassals,  '  for  them  and  their  heirs 
for  ever,'  these  lands  were  not  really  theirs  to  give,  but 
belonged  to  their  tribe  as  a  whole.  Thus,  no  real  or 
binding  submission  had  been  made,  the  assent  of  the  native 
Irish  population  having  been  ignored.  The  Normans 
regarded  the  situation  as  conquerors  and  from  the  feudal 
standpoint ;  the  Irish  believed  in  their  old  tribal  customs 
and  bitterly  resented  what  they  deemed  to  be  the  Norman 
intrusion. 

Despite  the  continuous  warfare  on  this  account  between 
the  settlers  and  the  natives,  on  the  whole  a  marked  improve- 
ment took  place  in  the  general  condition  of  the  country. 
In  the  conquered  districts  a  rough  form  of  Norman  law 
and  order  was  maintained;  the  natives  were  encouraged  to 
remain  as  cultivators  on  Norman  lands;  the  wars  among  the 


i8 


THE  NORMAN    INVASION. 


tribes  themselves  decreased  ;  there  was  an  increase  of  trade 
with  the  foundation  of  new  towns,  such  as  Kilkenny,  New 
Ross,  and  Carlow,  and  with  the  establishment  of  Norman 
farms  and  manors  came  an  improvement  in  agriculture. 


The  Norman  power  in  Ireland  reached  its  zenith  about 
the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century,  but  after  that  it  began  to 
decline  rapidly. 


THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH  POWER. 


CHAPTER  TIL 

THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH  POWER  AND 
ADVANCE  OF  THE  CELTS. 


I.    STATE  OF  IRELAND  FROM  THE  THIR- 
TEENTH TO  THE  FIFTEENTH  CENTURIES. 

The  Normans,  or  English  as  they  may  now  be  called, 
met  with  the  same  difficulty  in  the  conquest  of  Ireland 
as  the  Danes.  Except  for  the  shadowy  and  ineffectual 
power  of  the  Ard-ri  there  was  nothing  central  for  them  to 
strike  at,  nor  was  there  any  national  organisation,  such  as 
they  had  found  in  England,  which  they  could  absorb. 
The  tribes  could  only  be  subdued  by  degrees,  and  this 
too  under  very  unfavourable  circumstances.  If  the  English 
Kings  had  remained  in  the  country  for  any  length  of  time, 
they  could  have  secured  order  and  kept  their  vassals  in 
check,  and  had  they  employed  a  regular  army  of  trained 
soldiers  the  tribes  could  not  have  withstood  them  very 
long.  Again,  had  a  steady  stream  of  settlers  followed  in 
the  wake  of  the  first  adventurers  the  conquests  already 
made  would  have  been  more  firmly  secured.  As  it  was, 
occupied  with  their  wars  with  Scotland  and  France,  and 
in  the  fifteenth  century  distracted  by  the  civil  Wars  of  the 
Roses,  they  could  bestow  very  little  attention  upon  Ireland. 
The  result  was  that  everything  necessary  for  a  speedy 
and  satisfactory  conquest  was  lacking.  The  great  Anglo- 
Irish  nobles,  freed  from  the  controlling  influence  of  the 
King,  gained  great  power  in  their  dominions,  aru^  were 


20  THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH   POWER. 

divided  by  jealousies  and  always  fighting  with  the  officials 
and  new  settlers  from  England.  If  they  had  been 
left  entirely  alone,  being  of  Norman  blood,  they  would 
probably  have  created  an  orderly  kingdom,  but  the  King 
feared  to  give  them  a  free  hand,  and  usually  played  one 
against  the  other  as  the  only  means  by  which  he  could  keep 
them  in  check.  This  poUcy,  which  was  also  followed  by 
the  Viceroy  in  Dublin,  only  increased  their  violence  and 
tyranny,  and  led  to  a  dreadful  state  of  feudal  anarchy. 
The  regular  army  which  was  needed  in  Ireland,  not  only 
did  not  exist,  but  the  Irish  barons  themselves  and  their 
forces  were  continually  drafted  away  for  English  and 
French  wars.  The  country  became  so  disordered  that  new 
settlers  were  very  few,  and  many  of  the  old  colonists 
went  back  to  England.  Some  of  the  Norman  lords,  left 
alone  in  their  castles,  without  money  and  without  troops, 
had  to  throw  themselves  on  the  support  of  their  Irish 
tenants  and  subjects.  They  and  their  people  married 
Irish  wives,  adopted  Irish  dress  and  customs,  rode  their 
horses  without  saddles,  wore  their  hair  long  and  grew 
moustaches  in  the  Irish  fashion,  spoke  the  Irish  language, 
and  employed  '  kern '  rather  than  English  archers. 
These  *  Degenerate  English,'  as  they  were  called, 
gradually  became  *  more  Irish  than  the  Irish  them- 
selves,' though  they  never  lost  the  Norman  spirit  of 
governance,  and  were  a  source  of  great  anxiety  to  the 
Government.  Not  only  were  many  of  them  actually  hostile, 
but  their  absorption  with  the  tribes  meant  the  loss  of  much 
of  the  territory  which  had  been  gained  by  the  English. 

The  Celts,  who  by  this  time  made  no  pretence  of  sub- 
mitting, took  courage  from  the  confusion  which  reigned 
among  the  settlers,  and  having  learned  something  of  their 
methods  of  warfare,  they  came  down  from  the  mountains 
and  out  of  the  bogs  and  forests  to  which  they  had  been 
driven,  and  though  they  were  incapable  of  any  national 


THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH  POWER.  21 

resistance,  owing  to  their  continual  tribal  wars,  they 
gradually  recovered  large  tracts  of  their  original  territories. 
If  we  compare  the  maps  of  Ireland  on  pages  i8  and  30, 
we  shall  be  able  to  realise  the  great  advance  made  by  the 
Celts  between  the  thirteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries. 
The  first  shows  the  Norman  power  at  its  height,  with 
Norman  settlements  over  a  large  part  of  the  country  ; 
the  second  shows  the  English  settlers  proper  as  gathered 
into  that  small  district  which  included  Dublin  and  the 
surrounding  counties  of  Meath,  Louth,  and  Kildare.  This 
district,  which  was  named  the  *  English  Pale '  about  the 
beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century,  was  partly  fortified  by  a 
palisade  and  a  ditch  to  protect  it  from  the  attacks  of  the 
Celtic  tribesmen.  These  often  pounced  down  from  the 
mountains,  upon  the  outskirts,  carrying  off  booty  and 
exacting  tribute  or  *  black  rent '  from  the  settlers.  The 
Palesmen  were  under  the  direct  supervision  of  the  Viceroy 
and  of  the  garrison,  who  often  plundered  them  unmerci- 
fully, and  they  were  often  oppressed  by  great  lords,  such 
as  the  Earl  of  Kildare,  who  quartered  their  horses  and 
soldiers  upon  them  in  accordance  with  the  practice 
known  as  "  coyne  and  livery,"  and  exacted  other  heavy 
dues.  Thus,  though  the  Pale  was  more  orderly  and 
civilised  than  the  rest  of  Ireland,  its  inhabitants  often 
existed  in  a  state  of  great  misery.  The  rest  of  the  loyal 
English  were  composed  of  the  descendants  of  the  original 
Anglo-Norman  families  who  had  mingled  in  various 
degrees  with  the  Celts,  but  who  had  preserved  their  English 
sympathies.  Such  were  the  three  great  lords,  the  Earls 
of  Kildare,  Desmond,  and  Ormond,  who  ruled  their  separate 
territories  almost  in  the  manner  of  independent  kings. 
There  were  also  a  number  of  loyal  settlers  in  the  towns 
and  in  various  fortresses  scattered  over  the  country. 


22  THE  DECLINE  OF   ENGLISH   POWER. 

2.  THE  INVASION  OF  EDWARD  BRUCE,  1315. 
The  great  victory  of  Robert  Bruce,  the  Scottish  national 
hero,  over  the  EngUsh  forces  at  Bannockburn  in  13 14, 
encouraged  the  native  Irish  also  to  make  a  definite 
attempt  ar  rebeUion.  Some  of  the  northern  chiefs  invited 
Bruce's  brother  to  come  to  Ireland  in  order  that  he  might 
strike  a  further  blow  at  English  power.  The  Scots 
being  favourable  to  the  plan,  Edward  Bruce  landed  at 
Lame  in  May,  13 15,  with  a  force  of  6,000  men.  The 
colonists  in  their  feebleness  made  a  poor  stand  against  him. 
He  first  defeated  Richard  De  Burgh,  the  powerful  Earl  of 
Ulster,  near  Ballymena,  and  then  proceeding  southwards 
he  defeated  the  Viceroy  in  Kildare,  and  Mortimer,  lord 
of  Meath,  at  Kells.  He  then,  in  conjunction  with  his 
Irish  allies,  vv^asted  and  ravaged  the  Enghsh  territories 
all  over  the  country,  and  had  himself  proclaimed  King 
of  Ireland. 

The  tide  soon  turned  against  him,  however  ;  by  ravag- 
ing the  country  he  had  wasted  the  provisions  of  his  army, 
and  the  English  colonists,  making  a  supreme  effort,  collected 
a  large  force  under  John  de  Bermingham,  and,  on  the  14th 
October,  13 18,  utterly  defeated  the  Scots  near  Dundalk. 
Edward  Bruce  was  killed  and  his  forces  dispersed.  About 
the  same  time  Richard  de  Bermingham  inflicted  a  severe 
defeat  at  Athenry  upon  the  clan  of  the  O'Connors  of 
Connaught.  This  was  the  worst  actual  defeat  so  far  sus- 
tained by  the  Celts  ;  nevertheless,  the  English  power 
vras  so  badly  shaken  by  the  Bruce  invasion  that  the  general 
disorder  in  the  country  was  greatly  increased.  The 
O'Neills  regained  their  lands  in  the  north  ;  Ralph  Ufford, 
sent  over  by  Edward  III.,  was  chased  out  of  Ulster  by  the 
natives,  and  since  the  Government  was  proved  unable  to 
protect  its  subjects,  many  of  them  cast  off  their  allegiance, 
and,  like  the  Burghs  or  Burkes  of  Connaught,  threw  in  their 
lot  with  the  tribes. 


THE   DECLINE  OF   ENGLISH   POWER.  23 

3.  THE  STATUTE  OF  KILKENNY 

(40  Edward  III.),  1367  a.d. 

As  all  idea  of  further  conquests  in  Ireland  had  now  to 
be  abandoned,  the  Crown  was  thrown  back  upon  a  strict 
policy  of  defence.  A  statute  was  passed  in  1295  in  the 
reign  of  Edward  I.  which  compelled  those  lords  who  had 
border  estates,  and  who  had  left  their  tenants  to  the  tender 
mercies  of  the  Irish,  to  return  to  defend  them.  In  1356 
a  proclamation  was  made  that  only  Englishmen  by  birth 
could  hold  command  in  any  of  the  royal  towns  or  castles. 

The  Treaty  of  Bretigni,  concluded  with  France  in  1361, 
gave  Edward  III.  a  temporary  respite  from  the  '  Hundred 
Years'  War,'  and  in  that  year  he  sent  his  son,  Lionel, 
afterwards  Duke  of  Clarence,  over  to  Ireland  as  Viceroy. 
*  Our  Irish  dominions/  he  declared,  '  have  been  reduced 
to  such  utter  devastation  and  ruin  that  they  may  be  totally 
lost  if  our  subjects  there  are  not  immediately  succoured.* 
Lionel  proved  no  great  governor,  but  it  was  through  his 
influence  that  the  statute  of  Kilkenny  became  law. 

The  statute  was  intended  to  deal  with  the  chief  cause 
which  was  undermining  English  rule,  namely,  the  inter- 
mixture of  the  Anglo-Normans  with  the  natives.  It  was 
determined  that  this  process  should  be  barred,  and  that 
what  remained  of  the  English  settlements  in  Ireland 
should  be  strengthened  and  preserved.  The  Act  clearly 
enunciated  this  protective  policy.  Intermarriage  between 
the  English  and  Irish  was  forbidden.  The  EngHsh  were 
not  to  speak  the  Irish  language,  nor  were  they  to  abandon 
their  English  names,  clothes,  or  customs.  They  were 
not  to  supply  Irishmen  with  food,  horses,  or  arms.  They 
were  to  use  the  common  law  of  England  and  not  the 
Brehon  law  of  the  Celts,  which  was  referred  to  as  a  *  bad 
custom.'  The  churches  were  to  be  kept  distinct,  and  no 
Irishman  was  to  be  admitted  to  any  church,  college,  c 


24  THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH  POWER. 

benefice  situated  in  English  territory.  If  Irish  cattle 
were  pastured  on  English  land  without  leave  of  the  lord 
they  could  be  seized  and  confiscated.  No  Irish  bard 
or  piper  was  to  be  entertained  by  the  English,  as  these 
had  often  acted  as  spies.  Then,  in  order  to  keep  the  peace 
between  the  new  and  the  original  settlers,  the  statute  also 
proclaimed  that  no  difference  was  to  be  made  between  them, 
that  the  insulting  names  of  '  Irish  dog  '  and  '  English 
hobbe  *  were  to  be  discontinued,  and  that  all  were  to  be 
considered  as  *  English  lieges  of  our  lord  the  King.' 

The  Dublin  government,  however,  had  no  means  of 
carrying  out  its  will,  and  the  English  kings  soon  turned 
to  their  French  wars.  Thus  the  Statute  of  Kilkenny 
remained  almost  a  dead  letter. 

4.    THE  YORKISTS  IN  IRELAND. 

As  has  already  been  said,  the  Kings  of  England,  engaged 
in  foreign  and  home  affairs,  paid  little  attention  to  Ireland, 
and  seldom  set  foot  in  the  country. 

King  John  came  over  in  12 10  and  tried  to  strengthen 
the  royal  power  by  appointing  itinerant  judges  and 
enforcing  English  law. 

Ireland  was  not  again  visited  by  an  English  king  till 
1 394- 1 399  A.D.,  when  Richard  II.  led  over  two  large 
expeditions,  and  received  what  was  again  only  the  nominal 
submission  of  many  of  the  Irish  chiefs.  Before  he  could 
accomplish  anything  of  value  he  was  recalled  to  England 
to  face  a  serious  rebellion.  So  feeble  had  the  English 
power  in  Ireland  become  that  on  both  occasions  Richard 
was  severely  harassed  in  his  passage  through  the  Wicklow 
mountains  by  Art  MacMurrough  Kavanagh,  the  Irish 
self-styled  King  of  Leinster,  who  not  only  brought  the 
English  army  to  great  straits,  but  was  able  to  maintain  a 
large  and  independent  kingdom  just  beside  the  Pale  for  a 
period  of  nearly  fifty  j^ears. 


THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH  POWER.  25 

In  the  reign  of  Henry  VI.,  Richard  Duke  of  York  was 
sent  over  as  Viceroy.  During  his  ten  years  in  office  he 
made  himself  so  popular  with  all  parties  by  his  conciHa- 
tory  firmness  that  when  the  Wars  of  the  Roses  broke  out 
in  1455  between  the  houses  of  Lancaster  and  York,  many 
of  the  Anglo-Irish  nobles  took  up  the  Yorkist  cause.  In 
1450  the  Duke  returned  to  England,  but  after  the  Battle 
of  Bloreheath  (1459)  and  the  discomfiture  of  his  party, 
he  took  refuge  in  Ireland.  Though  he  had  been  attainted 
in  England,  the  Anglo-Irish  ParUament  in  Dublin  pro- 
claimed him  Viceroy,  and  at  the  same  time  declared  their 
own  independence  of  England.  Many  Irish  also  fell 
fighting  for  him  at  Wakefield  (1460),  at  which  battle  he  lost 
his  life. 

The  accession  of  Henry  VII.  to  the  throne  of  England 
in  1485  marked  the  final  triumph  of  the  Lancastrians 
and  the  end  of  the  Wars  of  the  Roses.  During  his  reign, 
however,  Henry  was  always  surrounded  by  Yorkist  plots, 
two  of  which,  at  least,  found  hearty  support  in  Ireland. 
The  cause  of  the  imposter,  Perkin  Warbeck,  was  eagerly 
taken  up  at  Cork,  while  Lambert  Simnel  was  actually 
crowned  and  acknowledged  as  King  in  Dublin. 

The  participation  of  the  Irish  in  the  Wars  of  the  Roses 
still  further  weakened  the  rapidly  diminishing  power  of 
England  in  Ireland*  Great  numbers  of  Anglo-Irish 
barons  fell  on  English  battlefields,  and  a  miniature  warfare 
was  also  carried  on  in  Ireland  itself  between  the  Geraldines 
and  the  Butlers,  for  while  the  former  had  taken  up  the 
Yorkist  cudgels,  the  latter  were  firm  adherents  to  the 
Lancastrian  cause. 

5.  POYNINGS'  LAW  (lo  Henry  VII.),  1494. 

'  The  task  which  lay  before  Henry  VII.  on  his  accession 

to  the  EngHsh  throne  was  the  restoration  of  order  and  the 

creation   of  a   strong   government.     As   Ireland   w^as   the 


26  THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH  POWER. 

centre  of  Yorkist  plots  which  always  found  support  amongst 
the  English  colonists,  Henry  determined  to  strike  a  blow 
at  their  power,  and  to  crush  the  independence  of  their 
Parliament.  For  this  purpose  he  sent  over  Sir  Edward 
Poynings  as  Deputy,  who  summoned  a  Parliament  at 
Drogheda  in  1494,  and  secured  the  passing  of  a  number 
of  Acts  to  carry  out  the  King's  policy.  The  lords  of  the 
Pale  were  forbidden  to  make  war  without  the  consent  of 
the  government.  They  were  not  to  oppress  their  vassals, 
nor  were  they  to  gather  together  large  bodies  of  retainers  ; 
judges  and  officers  of  state  were  no  longer  to  hold  their 
places  for  life,  but  only  according  to  the  King's  pleasure. 

The  Act  which  related  to  the  Irish  Parliament  was 
that  which  was  aftei*wards  known  as  *  Poynings'  Law.' 
Hitherto  the  Viceroys  had  summoned  ParUaments  almost 
as  they  pleased,  and  had  often  legislated  in  a  selfish  and 
oppressive  manner.  During  the  Wars  of  the  Roses  some 
of  them  had  been  actually  disloyal,  giving  their  assent 
to  measures  which  were  injurious  to  the  power  of  the 
Crown.  To  make  a  repetition  of  this  impossible,  the  Act 
took  away  the  freedom  of  the  Irish  Parliament  and  made 
it  subordinate  to  that  of  England.  Before  summoning 
it  the  Deputy  had  first  to  obtain  the  royal  licence;  he 
had  then  to  submit  the  heads  of  all  the  bills  which  it  was 
proposed  to  introduce,  and  finally,  before  any  of  these 
could  become  law,  the  consent  of  the  King  and  English 
Privy  Council  must  be  obtained.  The  English  Parliament 
was  not  actually  to  legislate  for  Ireland,  but  all  English 
laws  then  in  force  were  to  apply  to  this  country  also. 

These  enactments  were  really  aimed  at  the  excessive 
power  of  the  nobles  and  of  the  Viceroy,  and  as  such  they 
were  at  the  time  acceptable  to  the  English  colonists. 
Later  on,  however,  they  hampered  the  power  of  the  Irish 
Parliament  to  such  an  extent  that  constitutional  progress 
became  impossible. 


THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH   POWER.  27 

The  Parliament  of  Drogheda  also  provided  for  the 
defence  of  the  Pale.  The  ditches  round  its  margin  were  to 
be  repaired,  the  borders  were  to  be  guarded,  and  the  pro- 
visions of  the  Statute  of  Kilkenny  were  again  affirmed. 

Poynings'  rule  in  Ireland  was  short  and  unsuccessful. 
The  Anglo-Norman  party  was  jealous  of  his  power  and 
disliked  his  policy,  and  forwarded  so  many  complaints 
that  Henry  was  forced  to  recall  him  and  to  attempt  another 
method  of  governing  Ireland. 

6  THE  GERALDINE  SUPREMACY 

(1496-1534    A.D.). 

The  real  enemies  which  the  English  Crown  had  to  fear 
in  Ireland  were  not  the  Irish  themselves,  but  those  Anglo- 
Irish  colonists  who  wished  to  be  independent  of  English 
control.  Henry  VII.  therefore  determined  to  try  a  new 
experiment.  Instead  of  governing  Ireland  from  England, 
the  English  power  in  the  country  was  to  be  upheld  by 
combining  it  with  that  of  the  strongest  of  the  nobles,  who, 
in  return  for  conducting  the  government,  and  preserving 
order,  were  to  be  allowed  to  do  pretty  much  as  they 
pleased. 

The  Geraldines  were  by  this  time  the  most  powerful 
of  all  the  Anglo-Norman  houses.  They  were  descended, 
it  will  be  remembered,  from  that  Maurice  Fitzgerald  and 
his  relatives  who  came  over  at  the  time  of  the  Norman 
invasion.  They  had  gradually  divided  themselves  into 
two  branches,  which  were  converted  into  Earldoms  early 
in  the  fouiteenth  century.  The  Earls  of  Desmond  ruled 
over  the  Munster  Branch,  and  held  most  of  Limerick,  Cork, 
and  Kerry,  while  the  Leinster  Geraldines,  who  lay  along 
the  frontiers  of  the  English  Pale,  were  presided  over  by 
the  Earls  of  Kildare 

In  accordance  wilh  this  new  policy,  Garrett  or  Gerald 
Fitzgerald,   the    Eighth    Earl    of    Kildare,    was   appointed 


28  THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH  POWER. 

Deputy  in  1496.  He  had  taken  part  in  the  Simnel  con- 
spiracy, and  had  been  attainted  by  Poynings'  Parliament 
for  his  support  of  Perkin  Warbeck ;  yet  he  had  so  great 
an  influence  with  both  nobles  and  chiefs  that  if  his  loyalty 
could  be  secured  his  services  would  be  invaluable.  The 
new  experiment  was  at  first  a  complete  success.  Kildare 
was  an  able  man,  though  hardly  a  statesman,  and  he  saw 
that  his  power  in  Ireland  would  be  greatly  increased  if 
joined  to  that  of  the  Crown.  He  carried  the  English 
arms  far  and  wide  among  the  Celts,  and  though  his  expe- 
ditions were  often  the  result  of  his  private  quarrels,  this 
mattered  little  to  the  government  as  long  as  he  acted  as 
the  representative  of  English  authority.  His  greatest 
exploit  was  the  defeat  of  the  tribes  of  Munster  and  Con- 
naught  at  the  Battle  of  Knockdoe  in  1504,  for  this  great 
victory  did  more  towards  restoring  English  prestige  in 
Ireland  than  any  event  which  had  happened  for  a  very 
longtime.  In  1513  '  Tbe  Great  Earl,'  as  he  was  called, 
was  killed  in  a  raid  against  one  of  the  tribes,  and  was 
succeeded  by  his  son,  Garrett  Oge  or  Young  Gerald 
Fitzgerald. 

Garrett  Oge,  as  Lord  Deputy,  also  conducted  many 
expeditions  against  the  tribes,  and  did  good  service  for  the 
Crown  in  Ireland.  He  was  neither  as  able  nor  as  tactful, 
however,  as  his  father,  and  he  was  greatly  hampered  by  the 
enmity  of  the  Butlers,  the  hereditary  foes  of  his  house, 
who  were  continually  forwarding  complaints  of  his  con- 
duct to  the  English  Court.  He  was  charged,  for  instance, 
with  enriching  himself  with  the  Crown  revenues,  marrying 
his  daughters  into  hostile  tribes,  and  interfering  with  the 
judges  in  their  administration  of  the  law.  Some  of  these 
charges  were  doubtless  true,  and  Kildare  was  twice  sum- 
moned to  England  in  order  to  make  his  defence.  Twice 
he  managed  to  hold  his  own  with  the  King,  but  when  it 
was   discovered   that   he   was    dabbling    in    treason     and 


THE  DECLINE   OF   ENGLISH   POWER.  29 

treating,  through  his  cousin  Desmond,  with  powers  hostile 
to  England,  he  was  summoned  a  third  time  to  London 
and  sent  to  the  Tower  (1534). 

The  enemies  of  the  Geraldines  now  caused  rumours 
of  his  execution  to  be  spread  in  Ireland,  which  so  infuriated 
the  son  whom  he  had  left  as  Deputy  in  Dublin  during  his 
absence  that  he  broke  into  open  rebellion.  Riding  through 
the  city  on  the  nth  June,  'Silken  Thomas,'  as  he  was 
called  from  the  fringes  on  the  helmets  of  his  followers, 
summoned  the  Council  to  St.  Mary's  Abbey,  and  there 
publicly  renounced  his  allegiance. 

At  this  juncture  Garrett  Oge  died  in  the  Tower  ;  he  too 
had  probably  contemplated  rebellion,  for  before  leaving 
Ireland  he  had^conveyed  great  stores  of  arms  and  ammuni- 
tion from  Dublin  to  his  various  strongholds.  The  chief 
of  these  was  the  Castle  of  Maynooth,  into  which  his  son 
now  threw  a  large  garrison. 

The  rebellion  became  serious.  The  Royalist  Arch- 
bishop Allen  was  murdered  in  an  attempt  to  escape  to 
England.  Lord  Thomas,  now  Earl  of  Kildare,  harried  the 
Pale,  and  laid  siege  to  Dublin  Castle  ;  he  sent  envoys  to 
implore  the  aid  of  the  Emperor  and  of  the  Pope,  and  he 
offered  to  divide  Ireland  with  the  Butlers.  The  citizens  of 
DubHn,  however,  chased  his  undisciplined  forces  from  their 
walls.  Ormond  replied  to  his  suggestions  by  invading  his 
territories,  and  reinforcements  arrived  from  England. 
With  the  aid  of  heavy  artillery,  used  now  for  the  first  time 
in  Ireland,  Sir  William  Skeffington,  on  March  23rd,  1535, 
battered  down  the  walls  of  Maynooth,  and  slaughtered  the 
garrison.  Kildare's  Celtic  allies  fell  away  from  him,  and 
in  a  few  weeks'  time  he  was  forced  to  surrender.  This 
ended  the  rebellion.  He  was  conveyed  to  England  with 
five  of  his  uncles  who  had  been  treacherously  arrested 
at  a  banquet,  and  after  eighteen  months'  imprisonment 
they  were  all  executed. 


THE  DECLINE  OF  ENGLISH   POWER. 


This  Struck  a  final  blow  at  the  great  power  of  the  House 
of  Kildare,  and  through  it  at  the  whole  Anglo-Norman 
faction  in  Ireland.  It  was  now  clearly  seen  that  Ireland 
could  not  be  ruled  from  within,  and  as  the  English  colony 


had  almost  disappeared,  only  two  courses  of  action  were 
still  open  to  the  English  Crown.  Either  Ireland  must 
be  abandoned  altogether,  or  a  new  conquest  of  the  country 
must  be  speedily  undertaken. 


THE  TUDOR   CONQUEST. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   TUDOR   CONQUEST   AND   THE 
PLANTATION  OF  ULSTER. 


I.    A  NEW  POLICY  IN  IRELAND. 

By  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century  the  Middle  Ages 
were  over.  The  old  ideas  of  Church  and  State  were 
passing  away,  the  great  power  of  the  Papacy  was  waning, 
and  nations  with  strong  national  feeUngs  were  taking  the 
place  of  the  old  mediaeval  Empire.  In  each  of  the  chief 
countries  of  Europe  feudal  disorder  was  disappearing, 
and  a  great  middle  class  was  coming  into  existence  whose 
main  desire  was  for  commercial  development.  These 
causes  brqught  about  the  erection  of  strong  monarchies, 
the  Kings  of  the  sixteenth  century  being  allowed  by  their 
subjects  a  great  deal  of  power  in  return  for  a  strong  rule 
which  secured  unity  and  order  at  home,  and  permitted 
of  colonization  or  wars  of  conquest  abroad.  France 
developed  in  this  way  under  the  Bourbons,  Spain  under 
Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  and  England  under  the  Tudors. 
At  first  the  English  were  clear  of  wars  on  the  Continent, 
and  their  Kings  devoted  themselves  to  setting  their  house 
in  order  after  the  Wars  of  the  Roses.  As  the  century 
progressed,  however,  England  became  involved  in  Euro- 
pean politics  and  in  a  tremendous  struggle  with  Spain, 
the  greatest  power  of  that  age.  Ireland  grew  to  be  a 
serious  problem  from  the  military  point  of  view,  and  one 
which  demanded  instant  attention.  Chiefs  such  as 
Desmond   had   begun   to   intrigue   with   foreign   powers, 


32  THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST. 

and  it  was  clearly  seen  that  as  Ireland  was  England's 
weakest  spot,  foreign  troops  might  be  landed  there  at  any 
time,  the  support  of  natives  or  colonists  gained,  and  the 
country  used  as  a  base  for  an  English  invasion.  If  England, 
therefore,  wished  to  secure  her  safety  and  complete  her 
defences,  she  must  not  allow  Irish  affairs  to  drift  any  longer, 
but  must  secure  the  loyalty  of  her  people,  and  unite  them 
firmly  under  her  own  government. 

Henry  VIII.  devised  an  entirely  new  method  of  dealing 
with  Ireland.  The  old  pohcy  of  keeping  the  two  races 
apart,  which  was  embodied  in  the  Statute  of  Kilkenny, 
was  abandoned.  The  chiefs  were  to  be  conciliated  and 
given  a  share  in  the  government  of  their  own  country. 
The  tribal  system  was  not  exactly  abolished,  but  the  heads 
of  clans  were  to  hold  their  lands  from  the  King  in  the  feudal 
way  ;  they  were  to  contribute  certain  sums  to  the  govern- 
ment, and  to  renounce  *  Black  Rent '  and  other  exactions. 
They  were  also  to  attend  Parliament  regularly,  to  conform 
as  far  as  possible  to  English  laws  and  habits,  to  send  their 
sons  to  be  educated  at  the  English  Court,  and  finally  to 
acknowledge  the  King's  supremacy  over  the  Church, 
renouncing  that  of  the  Pope,  and  to  confirm  the  new  title 
of  '  King  of  Ireland  '  which  Henry  VIII.  also  wished  to 
assume.*  Negotiations  were  opened  with  each  individual 
chief,  large  sums  of  money  were  distributed,  and  titles 
and  honours  were  scattered  broadcast.  O'Neill  of  Ulster 
was  created  Earl  of  Tyrone,  MacWilliam  Burke  of 
Connaught  was  made  Earl  of  Clanrickarde,  while  O'Brien 
of  Munster  became  Earl  of  Thomond. 

The  great  advantage  secured  to  the  chiefs  and  the  great 
bribe  held  out  to  them  was  of  course  the  permanent  pos- 
session of  their  estates.  In  this,  however,  the  English 
repeated  the  mistake  which  they  had  made  in  the  twelfth 
century.     They  had  secured  the  allegiance  of  the  chiefs,  but 

♦Earlier  Kings  had  only  claimed  the  title  Dominus  (I^ord)  of  Ireland. 


THE   TUDOR   CONQUEST.  33 

they  practically  ignored  the  bulk  of  the  native  Irish,  who 
persisted  in  regarding  the  tribal  territory  as  their  own.  It 
was  impossible  to  join  together  the  feudal  and  the  tribal 
systems.  By  English  law,  for  instance,  a  man's  son 
succeeded  without  question  to  his  father's  lands.  By 
Irish  custom  a  chief  was  not  necessarily  succeeded  by  his 
son,  but  by  a  '  Tanist,*  or  successor  chosen  by  the  tribe. 
Thus,  on  the  death  of  a  chief,  it  was  possible  that,  while 
the  Crown  recognised  the  succession  of  his  eldest  son, 
the  tribe  might  dispute  the  succession  by  upholding  the 
claims  of  their  tanist. 

For  a  time  Henry  VIII.'s  scheme  worked  smoothly. 
All  the  chiefs  kept  to  their  allegiance,  the  King's  power 
was  everywhere  acknowledged,  the  royal  sheriffs  were 
obeyed,  order  was  restored,  the  bogs  and  forests  began 
to  be  traversed  with  roads,  and  agriculture  to  flourish. 
*  If  only  this  same  be  continued  but  two  descents,' 
declared  the  Deputy  St.  Leger,  '  then  is  this  land  for  ever 
reformed.' 

The  course  of  Tudor  policy  in  Ireland  was,  however, 
unfortunately  altered.  England  had  presently  to  face  a 
most  serious  situation  on  the  Continent ;  a  great  Catholic 
League  had  been  formed  against  her,  and  as  the  champion 
of  Protestantism  and  of  free  expansion  in  the  New  World, 
she  was  soon  engaged  in  a  death-struggle  with  Spain. 
Had  the  Irish  chiefs  held  to  their  allegiance  in  this  great 
crisis  in  English  History  all  would  probably  have  been 
well.  Three  great  native  risings,  however,  followed  each 
other  in  succession.  These  were  caused  partly  by  the 
conflict  already  mentioned  between  English  and  native 
law,  partly  by  the  introduction  of  the  Reformation  and 
hostility  aroused  by  the  destruction  of  the  monasteries, 
but  mainly  by  the  ambition  of  the  chiefs,  whose  aim  was  to 
secure  their  positions  amongst  their  own  people,  and  who 
were  encouraged  by  promises  of  aid  from  English  enemies 


34  THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST. 

abroad.  In  view  of  these  risings  and  these  intrigues 
Elizabeth  was  forced  to  give  up  conciHatory  measures, 
and  cruel  Wars  of  Conquest  were  begun.  The  Irish  tribal 
system  was  broken,  and  the  country  was  subdued  for  the 
first  time  in  its  history. 

2.    RISINGS    OF    THE    NATIVE    CHIEFS. 

At  this  time,  except  for  some  English  and  recent  Scotch 
settlements  on  the  coast  of  Down  and  Antrim,  the  popu- 
lation of  Ulster  was  entirely  Irish.  The  two  most  impor- 
tant tribes  were  those  of  the  O'Neills  and  the  O'Donnells. 
The  former  occupied  what  is  now  Armagh,  Tyrone,  and 
part  of  Londonderry  ;  the  rule  of  the  latter  extended 
over  Donegal.  These  two  tribes,  now  that  the  power  of 
the  Geraldines  was  broken,  were  the  most  powerful  in 
Ireland.  They  both  claimed  to  be  of  Royal  descent,  and, 
like  the  Anglo-Norman  families  of  Butler  and  Fitzgerald, 
had  always  been  foes. 

Con  O'Neill  was  one  of  the  chiefs  who  were  won  over 
by  Henry  VIII.  In  1542,  in  return  for  acknowledging 
the  King's  supremacy,  he  was  created  Earl  of  Tyrone, 
and  the  succession  to  the  lands  of  the  O'Neill  was  secured 
to  his  eldest  (but  illegitimate)  son,  Mathew,  who  was  at  the 
same  time  created  Baron  of  Dungannon. 

Shane  O'Neill,*  however,  a  younger  and  legitimate  son 
who  had  made  a  name  for  himself  in  raids  against  the 
Ulster  Scots,  and  in  feuds  with  the  O'Donnells,  was  selected 
as  '  Tanist '  by  the  tribe,  and  soon  a  struggle  began  for  the 
succession  to  the  chieftainry.  Con  was  cfiased  from 
Ulster  and  Mathew  was  murdered.  Shane  thereupon 
received  the  title  of  '  The  O'Neill  '  from  his'^people,  thus 
rejecting  the  Earldom  conferred  upon  his  father,  and  so 
defying  the  power  of  the  English  Government. 

♦  Shane,  or  Seaghan,  is  the  Irish  for  John.     Pronounce  Shawn* 


THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST.  35 

This  placed  Queen  Elizabeth  in  a  difficulty.  If  she 
supported  the  claims  of  Brian,  Mathew's  son,  in  accord- 
ance with  Henry  VIII. 's  agreement  with  Con,  a  rebellion 
of  the  O'Neills  would  follow.  If,  on  the  other  hand, 
she  recognised  Shane,  she  was  going  back  upon  her  father's 
policy,  which  might  seem  like  an  acknowledgment  of 
English  weakness.  She  finally  decided  to  leave  things 
alone;  the  Crown  finances  were  very  low,  and  Shane  would, 
she  thought,  at  least  keep  the  O'Donnells  in  check,  and  so 
preserve  a  balance  of  power  in  the  North. 

Shane,  however,  was  full  of  ambition,  and  he  determined 
to  make  himself  lord  over  Ulster.  He  gained  a  great 
deal  of  power,  and  adopted  such  a  menacing  attitude  that 
in  1 561  the  Earl  of  Sussex  proceeded  against  him.  Shane 
could  not  be  forced  to  any  definite  engagement,  wore  out 
Sussex's  army,  and  captured  the  chief  of  the  O'Donnells, 
who  had  allied  himself  with  the  English. 

At  length  he  was  persuaded  to  come  to  terms,  and  as 
he  would  treat  with  none  other  than  the  Queen  herself, 
it  was  decided  that  he  should  come  to  court  in  person. 
He  arrived  in  London  with  his  Celtic  train  in  January, 
1562,  made  his  submission,  and  told  the  Queen  that  he  had 
been  selected  as  Con's  successor  by  the  clan  '  He  had 
no  estate  in  that  which  he  surrendered  but  for  life,'  he 
explained,  *  nor  could  he  surrender  it  without  the  consent 
of  the  nobility  and  people  by  whom  he  was  elected  to  the 
honour  of  the  O'Neill.'  The  custom  of  '  Tanistry,' 
however,  seemed  as  curious  to  the  English  courtiers  as 
Shane  himself,  with  his  huge  galloglasses,  clad  as  he  was 
in  a  sweeping  saffron  mantle,  his  hair  long  in  the  native 
fashion,  his  gestures  violent,  and  his  Irish  speech  sound- 
ing so  strangely  in  their  ears  that  one  of  them  scornfully 
compared  it  to  the  howling  of  a  dog. 

The  Irish  chieftain,  however,  was  not  a  fool.  While  he 
was  detained  at  the  English  Court  on  various  pretexts, 


36  THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST. 

he  was  observing  English  ways  and  keeping  his  ears  open. 
He  heard,  for  instance,  that  Mary  Queen  of  Scots  was  at 
the  head  of  a  great  Catholic  conspiracy  for  winning  the 
throne  from  Elizabeth,  and  he  entered  into  intrigues 
with  the  Spanish  Ambassador. 

Elizabeth,  at  this  time,  v/as  fully  occupied  by  a  war 
with  France,  and  as  disturbances  were  beginning  to  break 
out  in  Ulster,  Shane  was  allowed  to  return  with  a  promise 
to  reduce  the  Scots  and  keep  the  O'Donnells  in  check. 

Once  again  in  Ireland  he  took  no  trouble  to  conceal  his 
ambition.  He  subdued  the  Maguires  and  O'Reillys, 
attacked  the  O'Donnells,  and  began  to  threaten  the 
English  settlements.  In  view  of  the  danger  from  Scotland 
another  truce  was  patched  up  with  him  in  1563,  and  his 
title  of  *  The  O'Neill '  was  formally  acknowledged. 

Up  to  this  Shane  had  shown  intelligence  and  some 
prudence,  but  he  now  appears  as  the  typical  Celtic  chief 
who  cannot  look  beyond  himself  and  his  own  clan,  who 
has  little  foresight,  and  no  thought  for  his  country  as  a 
whole.  Instead  of  joining  with  the  O'Donnells  and  the 
Scots,  who  had  lately  settled  in  Antrim,  in  a  solid  alliance 
against  the  English,  he  turned  against  both  and  tried  to 
crush  them.  The  rest  of  his  conduct  was  equally  foolish. 
He  marched  into  Connaught  to  exact  the  tribute  which  had 
been  paid  of  old  to  the  Irish  Kings ;  he  ravaged  several 
English  settlements,  and  openly  mocked  at  the  govern- 
ment in  DubUn.  He  also  carried  on  a  traitorous  corre- 
spondence not  only  with  Mary  Queen  of  Scots  and  the 
Earl  of  Argyll,  but  with  the  French  King,  Charles  IX,  and 
with  the  Cardinal  of  Lorraine. 

Elizabeth  resolved  to  crush  him  as  her  father  had 
crushed  Kildare.  He  was  proclaimed  a  traitor  in  August, 
1566,  and  Sir  Henry  Sydney,  with  a  large  force,  invaded 
Tyrone.  Many  of  the  Northern  chiefs  were  gained 
over  by  the  English,  with  the    result    that    Shane  was 


THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST.  37 

defeated  by  the  O'Donnells  in  May,  1567.  His  followers 
quickly  dispersed,  and  flying  for  refuge  to  his  old  enemies 
the  Scots,  he  met  his  death  in  their  camp.  His  head  was 
sent  in  a  napkin  to  the  Deputy  and  stuck  in  triumph  over 
the  gate  of  Dublin  Castle. 

Shane's  aims  have  already  been  stated  ;  he  had  no  idea 
of  uniting  his  countrymen  against  England  ;  he  simply 
wished  to  make  himself  supreme  in  Ulster.  He  cared  as 
little  for  the  other  Irish  chiefs  as  they  for  him,  the  result 
being  that  it  was  a  case  of  dog  eating  dog,  and  the  lion 
devouring  both.  He  had  ability  as  a  soldier,  and  was  able 
to  hold  his  own  in  intrigue  and  at  the  court  of  Elizabeth, 
and  he  had  made  the  greatest  and  most  protracted  resist- 
ance to  the  EngHsh  ever  yet  made  by  a  purely  Celtic 
chief.  Personally  he  was  cruel,  tyrannical,  savage,  and 
unscrupulous.  He  murdered  his  rivals  and  did  not  keep 
his  word.  In  the  sixteenth  century,  however,  there  was 
little  honour  among  statesmen,  and  even  the  Deputy 
Sussex  had  conspired  to  take  his  life,  and  on  one  occasion 
sent  him  a  present  of  poisoned  wine.  As  for  his  relations 
with  France,  Spain,  and  the  Pope,  none  of  them  really 
cared  for  Irish  interests,  but  merely  used  him  as  a  means 
of  annoyance  to  England,  upon  whom  they  were  not  yet 
prepared  to  declare  open  war. 

Shane *s  rebellion  had  cost  Elizabeth  more  than  £147,000 
and  over  3,500  men,  and  though  the  claims  of  his  kinsman 
were  recognised  as  Tanist  in  preference  to  those  of  the 
Baron  of  Dungannon,  the  English  Government  had  clearly 
got  the  upper  hand.  This  is  seen  by  the  establishment  in 
1569  of  local  Deputies  with  military  powers  called 
*  Presidents,*  whose  functions  were  not  only  to  administer 


i.{\j^ 


justice,  but  to  keep  down  the  Celts.  .__  .  i)^ 

The   next   important   rising  was  that   of    the   Earl     of    J 
Desmond   and   of  his   cousin    James  Maurice   Fitzgerald. 
Since  the  rebellion  of  *  Silken  Thomas  '  the   Geraldines 


38  THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST. 

felt  that  the  Government  was  bent  on  their  destruction, 
especially  since  Elizabeth  had  taken  the  side  of  the 
Butlers,  their  old  enemies.  They  turned  their  eyes, 
therefore,  towards  the  foreign  foes  of  England,  the  members 
of  the  great  Catholic  League.  Maurice  Fitzgerald  first 
sought  the  aid  of  PhiUp  of  Spain,  \dio  was  not  yet  pre- 
pared, however,  for  open  war.  He  then  turned  to  the 
Pope,  Gregory  XIII.,  who  gave  him  some  ships  and  several 
hundred  men  under  the  command  of  an  English  buccaneer 
named  Stukely.  This  rascal  carried  off  the  whole  expe- 
dition on  a  raid  of  plunder  to  the  north  coast  of  Africa, 
and  never  reached  Ireland. 

Fitzgerald  himself,  with  a  crew  of  foreigners  and  some 
friars,  amongst  whom  was  the  celebrated  divine,  Dr. 
Sanders  who  acted  as  treasurer  to  the  expedition,  landed 
in  Kerry  in  July,  1579.  He  called  upon  the  Irish  to  rise, 
and  the  country  was  ripe  for  rebellion.  A  rising  of  the 
Burkes  of  Connaught  had  just  been  put  down  with  great 
cruelty,  and  the  confiscation  of  the  lands  of  the  O'Moores 
and  O'Connors,  in  what  are  now  King's  and  Queen's 
Counties,  bad  caused  much  discontent. 

Gerald,  the  fifteenth  and  last  Earl  of  Desmond,  hesitated 
at  first,  but  at  length  threw  in  his  lot  with  the  rebels — 
and  as  Fitzgerald  had  met  his  death  in  a  skirmish  with  one 
of  the  chiefs  of  Connaught,  he  assumed  command  of  the 
rising.  A  gigantic  insurrection  then  blazed  forth  amongst 
the  Geraldines  all  over  Munster.  Ormond  and  Sir  William 
Pelham  advanced  to  crush  the  revolt.  This  was  no  easy 
matter.  The  English  soldiers  were  discipHned,  and  well 
armed  with  firelocks,  but  parts  of  Munster  were  covered 
with  vast  forests  in  which  the  natives  lay  in  ambush  and 
harassed  their  progress. 

We  must  remember  that  wars  of  conquest  and  the 
crushing  of  revolts  were  in  these  times  carried  on  with  great 
ferocity.     The  Huguenots  were  crushed  in  France  with  the 


THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST.  39 

Utmost  brutality ;  Alva,  the  general  of  Philip  of  Spain, 
put  down  the  rebels  in  the  Netherlands  with  great  cruelty, 
and  later  in  the  next  century  the  generals  of  all  nations 
in  the  Thirty  Years*  War  in  Germany  sacked  towns  and 
massacred  the  inhabitants.  The  English  in  Ireland  had 
the  same  notions  of  warfare  as  were  common  to  their 
age.  The  Desmond  fortresses  were  sacked,  the  garrisons 
were  often  flung  from  the  battlements,  the  woods  and 
crops  were  set  on  fire,  the  soldiers  committed  frightful 
cruelties.  No  Irish  soldier  was  promised  quarter  until 
he  had  brought  with  him  an  Irishman's  head  ;  this  shows 
the  savage  spirit  of  the  war.  The  natives  retaliated  as  far 
as  they  could.  Desmond  sacked  Youghal  and  threatened 
Cork. 

The  English  of  the  Pale  now  burst  into  revolt,  being 
indignant  at  another  of  those  taxes  which  had  been  laid 
upon  them  without  their  consent.  Under  Lord  Baltin- 
glass  they  defeated  the  Deputy,  Lord  Grey  de  Wilton, 
at  Glenmalure  in  County  Wicklow,  but  the  rising  soon 
died  down,  and  Baltinglass  and  the  other  leaders  fled 
abroad. 

Philip  of  Spain  now  sent  some  aid  to  the  Munster 
rebels.  In  October,  1580,  a  number  of  Spaniards  landed 
at  Smerwick  Harbour  in  Kerry.  The  old  fort  which  they 
occupied  was  soon  surrounded  by  the  Deputy's  forces  ; 
they  had  to  surrender,  and  600  of  them  were  slaughtered. 

The  war  in  Munster  still  dragged  on.  Dr.  Sanders 
was  killed  and  others  fled  the  country.  Desmond  himself 
fled  from  place  to  place  with  a  price  upon  his  head,  and 
was  finally  taken  and  slain.  The  frightful  state  of  famine 
and  misery  to  which  the  natives  were  reduced  has  been 
described  by  the  English  poet,  Edmund  Spenser,  who 
came  over  to  Ireland  in  158c  as  the  Secretary  of  Lord 
Grey.  *  Out  of  every  corner  of  the  woods  and  glens,' 
he  says,  '  they  came  creeping  forth  upon    their    hands, 


40  THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST. 

for  their  legs  could  not  bear  them  ;  they  looked  anatomies 
of  death ;  they  spake  like  ghosts  crying  out  of  their  graves  ; 
they  did  eat  of  the  carrions,  happy  when  they  could  find 
them,  yea,  and  one  another  soon  after,  insomuch  as  the 
very  carcasses  they  spared  not  to  scrape  out  of  their  graves  ; 
and  if  they  found  a  plot  of  water-cresses  or  shamrocks, 
there  they  flocked  as  to  a  feast  for  the  time,  yet  not  able 
long  to  continue  therewithal ;  that  in  short  space  there 
were  none  almost  left,  and  a  most  populous  and  plentiful 
country  suddenly  left  void  of  man  or  beast.' 

Religious  feeling  played  some  part  in  this  Munster 
rebellion,  but  its  chief  cause  was  the  dissatisfaction  of 
the  remnant  of  the  Geraldines  at  their  sunken  position 
and  diminished  power.  The  net  result  was  the  conj- 
fiscation  of  the  Desmond  estates  by  the  Crown  and  thb 
destruction  of  the  clans  in  Munster. 

Shane  O'Neill  was  succeeded  as  head  of  his  clan  by  his 
cousin    Turlough.     Hugh    O'Neill,    the    second    son    of 
Mathew    Baron    of    Dungannon,    was    thus    disregarded, 
but  as  his  father  had  always  been  on  the  side  of  the  Govern- 
ment, he  was  taken  under  the  protection  of  the  state, 
and  sent  to  be  educated  at  the  court  of  Elizabeth.     He 
returned  to  Ireland  as  the  commander  of  an  English  troop 
of  horse,  and  took  an  active  part  in  the  Desmond  war. 
The  Government  were  always  suspicious  of  the  power 
of  the  O'Neills,  and  so  decided  to  support  Hugh  in  opposi- 
tion to  Turlough,  for  it  was  thought  that  if  the  two  went 
to  war  neither  of  them  would  be  then  strong  enough  to 
attack   the   English.     In    1585    Hugh   was   made    Earl   of 
Tyrone,   and   on   the   death   of  Turlough   the   tribesmen 
elected  him  as  chief,  giving  him  the  title  of  *  The  O'Neill.* 
This  changed  the  attitude  of  the  Government  towards  him. 
By  accepting  the  old  tribal  title  he  might,  it  was  felt,  lay 
claim  at  any  time  to  the  Lordship  of  Ulster  and  follow 
in  Shane's  footsteps. 


THE  TUDOR   CONQUEST.  4 1 

Hugh's  position  was  a  difficult  one.  He  had  a  private 
quarrel  with  Sir  Henry  Bagenal  and  other  English  officials, 
who  did  all  they  could  to  rouse  up  the  Government  against 
him.  He  saw  he  could  not  at  the  same  time  keep  loyal 
and  hold  his  position  among  his  own  people.  He  deter- 
mined, therefore,  to  w^ork  against  the  English.  His  educa- 
tion at  a  civilised  court  and  in  the  midst  of  politicians  now 
stood  him  in  good  stead.  He  was  a  far  better  statesman 
than  Shane.  He  saw  that  the  Irish  must  be  united  to  make 
a  successful  war  upon  the  English,  and  that  foreign  aid 
was  also  necessary.  He  allied  with  the  O'Donnelfe,  and 
instead  of  crushing  the  other  Ulster  tribes,  he  won  over 
the  chiefs,  and  built  up  a  great  League  of  the  North.  He 
stirred  up  the  natives  of  Connaught,  and  he  entered  into 
relations  with  the  malcontents  of  the  Pale  and  those  who 
had  survived  in  Munster  after  the  Desmond  rebeUion. 
He  sent  envoys  to  Rome  and  Madrid.  He  plundered  the 
English  settlements  of  Cavan.  He  defeated  the  troops 
sent  over  under  Sir  John  Norris  in  1595. 

Besides  statesmanship,  O'Neill  had  also  learned  the 
English  arts  of  war.  He  drilled  and  disciplined  his  soldiers 
in  the  English  fashion,  and  bought  arms  and  ammunition 
from  Spain.  In  the  summer  of  1598  he  laid  siege  to  a 
fort  named  Portmore,  near  Armagh,  and  when  Bagenal 
marched  to  its  relief  with  5,000  men,  he  entrenched  him- 
self at  a  place  called  the  Yellow  Ford,  on  the  river  Callan, 
about  two  miles  from  the  town.  Pie  here  made  elaborate 
preparations  for  a  fixed  battle,  placed  an  ambush,  dug 
holes  in  front  of  his  position,  and  made  trenches  and 
hedges  of  thorns.  On  the  14th  August  Bagenal's  forces 
advanced  to  meet  him  over  this  dangerous  ground,  and 
found  themselves  attacked  both  in  front  and  behind.  The 
English  lost  their  commander  and  about  half  their  men. 
They  were  so  completely  routed  that  they  left  all  their 
guns,  baggage,  and  colours  in  the  hands  of  the  Irish. 


42  THE  TUDOR   CONQUEST. 

Portmore,  Monaghan,  and  Armagh  then  surrendered 
to  O'Neill,  which  left  all  Ulster  in  his  hands  with  the 
exception  of  Carrickfergus.  He  went  south  and  raised 
another  rebellion  in  Munster.  The  Desmond  castles 
were  recovered  ;  Leinster  and  Connaught  burst  into 
revolt.  All  Ireland,  except  Dublin  and  a  few  garrison 
towns,  were  then  held  by  the  rebels,  who  now  had  about 
18,000   men  under  arms. 

This  was  the  first  time  that  any  united  attempt  had  been 
made  against  the  Government,  and  it  was  seen  that  if 
foreign  aid  were  to  arrive  the  English  would  surely  be 
driven  into  the  sea.  In  the  spring,  therefore,  of  1599 
Elizabeth  sent  over  the  Earl  of  Essex,  vdio  had  made  a 
p-reat  reputation  in  an  expedition  against  Spain,  with  the 
largest  army  which  had  ever  been  seen  in  Ireland.  Essex 
should  have  struck  first  at  Ulster  and  at  the  power  of 
O'Neill,  but  he  was  foolishly  persuaded  by  the  Dublin 
Council,  who  had  estates  in  the  south,  to  march  into 
Munster.  His  army  melted  away  in  the  guerrilla  warfare 
carried  on  by  the  natives,  and  he  was  defeated  by  the 
O'Moores  and  the  O'Connors  on  the  borders  of  the  Pale. 
The  Queen,  enraged  at  his  failure,  commanded  Essex 
to  march  north  without  further  delay.  In  August,  1599, 
he,  therefore,  proceeded  to  Ulster.  With  his  sadly 
diminished  army  he  did  not  dare  to  attack  O'Neill,  now 
at  the  height  of  his  power,  and  so  arranged  a  meeting 
with  him.  At  this  conference  a  truce  was  arranged,  in 
which  the  Irishman  got  the  better  terms. 

In  February,  1600,  the  young  but  experienced  soldier, 
Charles  Blount,  Lord  Mountjoy,  was  sent  over.  He 
remodelled  the  few  English  troops,  raised  large  Irish 
levies,  and  increased  the  garrisons  and  forts  all  over  the 
country.  These  served  as  retreats  for  his  soldiers,  and 
as  points  from  which  to  devastate  the  country.  The 
same  methods  were  pursued  as  in  the  Desmond  rising. 


THE  TUDOR   COI^UEST.  43 

Sir    George    Carew,    the    President   of    Munster,   crushed 
the  rebellion  in  the  southern  provinces,  while  Mountjoy 
burnt  the  crops  and  slaughtered  the  inhabitants  of  Ulster. 
The  long-expected  aid  from  Spain  now  at  last  arrived. 
On  the  23rd  September,  1601,  a  Spanish  fleet,  under  the 
command  of  Don  Juan  de  Aguila,  reached  Kinsale  with 
3400   troops.     They   took   possession   of  the   town   and 
summoned   the   northern   chiefs   to   their   aid.     Had   the 
Spaniards  landed  in  the   north   they  would   have  had  a 
greater  chance  of  success,  but  they  were  afraid  of  those 
rocky  coasts  upon  which  so  many  ships  of  the  Armada 
had    been    wrecked.     O'Neill    and    O'Donnell,    however, 
marched   rapidly   south.     Mountjoy   and   Carew   had   by 
this  time  joined  forces.     They  blockaded  Kinsale  on  the 
north  and  filled  the  harbour  with  their  ships.     O'Neill 
was  for  starving  the  English  out,  but  O'Donnell,  who  was 
an  inferior  general,  wished  for  an  immediate  action.     On 
the  24th  December,  1601,  a  night  attack  was  made,  but 
as  the  English  had  been  forewarned,  and  as  the  Spaniards 
failed   to    co-operate,  the    Irish   were   completely    routed. 
The  chiefs  hastened  back  to  the  north,  Kinsale  surrendered, 
and  the  Spaniards  were  allowed  to  depart. 

Philip  was  disgusted  with  the  failure  of  his  enterprise 
and  no  more  help  could,  therefore,  be  expected  from  abroad. 
O'Neill  was  gradually  hemmed  in,  and  as  the  chiefs 
deserted  him  one  after  another,  he  saw  that  it  would  be 
madness  to  continue  in  revolt.  He,  therefore,  made  his 
submission.  He  was  allowed  to  retain  his  lands  and  his 
earldom,  but  not  the  coveted  title  of  '  The  O'Neill.' 
He  had  also  to  promise  to  introduce  English  laws  and 
customs  into  Tyrone,  and  to  abandon  all  intrigues  with 
foreign  powers. 

Thus  the  great  rebel,  Hugh  O'Neill,  had  once  more 
become  a  servant  of  the  Crown.  His  position  in  Ireland 
as    such    soon    became    impossible.     He    quarrelled    with 


44  THE  TUDOR   CONQUEST, 

his  vassals,  some  of  whom  now  claimed  to  hold  their  lands 
direct  from  the  Crown  ;  he  was  suspected  by  the  Govern- 
ment, which  was  always  in  dread  of  a  Spanish  invasion 
or  a  Catholic  plot,  and  those  English  ofiicials  who  had 
hoped  to  gain  from  the  forfeiture  of  his  estates  plainly 
showed  their  dissatisfaction.  Rory  O'Donnell,  who  had  also 
submitted  and  been  created  the  Earl  of  Tirconnell,  was 
in  a  similar  position. 

In  1607  matters  were  brought  to  a  crisis  by  a  report 
invented  by  their  enemies  of  a  conspiracy  in  which  the  two 
Earls  were  supposed  to  have  taken  part.  They  decided 
to  leave  the  country,  and  on  the  14th  September  embarked 
with  their  families  from  the  shore  of  Lough  Swilly.  After 
various  wanderings  they  finally  setded  in  Rome,  where 
they  lired  in  receipt  of  pensions  from  the  Pope  and  the 
King  of  Spain. 

After  die  *  Flight  of  the  Earls '  their  estates  were 
confiscated,  and  \^en  the  short-lived  rising  in  the  north 
of  Sir  Cahir  O'Dogherty  had  been  put  down  in  July,  1608, 
the  English  Crown  was  absolutely  supreme  in  Ireland. 

3.    THE  PLANTATIONS. 

As  we  have  seen,  the  English  undertook  the  conquest 
of  Ireland  in  the  sixteenth  century  in  order  to  make  them- 
selves secure  from  other  nations.  Once  conquered,  the 
problem  was  how  to  keep  the  country  in  subjection^  The 
more  recent  EngUsh  settlements  in  Ireland  had  gene- 
rally been  very  small  or  very  feeble,  and  the  rest  of  the 
country  had  been  torn  between  the  Anglo-Irish  and  the 
Celts.  Ireland  was  in  the  same  condition  as  England 
might  have  been  had  she  been  half  conquered  by  a  foreign 
king,  and  then  half  governed  from  abroad.  There  was 
no  Irish  nation,  and  no  central  government,  but  only 
separate   and   independent   tribes.     In   the  circumstances, 


THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST.  45 

having  no  standing  army,  and  very  little  money,  the  Crown 
decided  to  dispossess  some  of  the  natives,  and  to  plant 
colonies  or  garrisons  in  various  parts  of  the  country, 
as  the  best  and  cheapest  way  of  controlling  it.  The 
rebellions  which  took  place  at  various  times  gave  the 
opportunity  for  confiscation  of  estates. 

The  first  plantation  was  that  of  Leix  and  OSaly,  These 
lands  belonged  to  the  O'Connors  and  the  O'Moores,  whose 
chiefs  were  always  breaking  into  rebellion  and  menacing 
the  Pale.  They  had  come  to  terms  with  Henry  VIII., 
but  on  his  death  they  became  dissatisfied  \^dth  the  govern- 
ment, and  threw  off  their  allegiance.  Their  land  was  laid 
waste,  their  tribes  scattered,  and  the  chiefs  themselves  sent 
over  to  England.  The  lands  were  not  definitely  settled 
till  Mary's  reign,  when  an  Act  converted  them  into  shires 
as  King's  and  Queen's  Counties,  with  chief  boroughs 
or  forts  at  Philipstown  and  Maryborough.*  The  land 
was  to  be  divided  between  the  English  and  Irish,  and  the 
Lord  Deputy,  the  Earl  of  Sussex,  was  ordered  to  distribute 
estates.  In  1563  a  number  of  plots  of  from  300 — 400  acres 
were  granted  to  forty  gentlemen  of  the  Pale  and  to  a  number 
of  loyal  Irish,  on  condition  that  fords,  highways,  and 
churches  should  be  built,  and  that  English  law  and  customs 
should  prevail. 

This  plantation  was  not  at  first  a  success.  The  country 
was  not  properly  conquered  at  the  time,  and  the  English 
settlers  had  to  fight  both  to  get  their  lands  and  then  to 
hold  them.  Within  fifty  years  the  original  inhabitants 
made  no  less  than  eighteen  attempts  to  regain  their  old 
homes,  and  as  each  attempt  failed  new  confiscations  were 
made  and  new  colonies  planted.  A  continual  war- 
fare thus  went  on,  in  which  the  natives  were  gradually 
dispossessed,  but  many  of  them  remained  as  ploughmen 
or  farm  servants  on  the  lands  which  had  once  been  theirs. 

♦  Named  after  Queen  Mary  and  her  consort,  Philip  II.  of  Spain. 


^5  THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST. 

By  1622  the  woods  and  bogs  had  been  reclaimed  and  the 
country  studded  with  English  farms.  The  plantation 
could  now  be  looked  upon  as  a  success,  but  only  after  years 
of  suffering  on  both  sides  and  at  the  price  of  injustice  and 
cruelty  to  the  natives. 

The  Plantation  of  Monster  was  carried  out  after  the  great 
Desmond  rising,  when  the  vast  estates  of  the  Earl  of 
Desmond  and  140  of  his  followers  wgtc  confiscated  by  the 
Crown.  The  lands,  which  comprised  about  half-a-million 
acres,  were  parcelled  out  in  1586  into  lots  of  12,000,  8,000, 
6,000  and  4,000  acres.  The  Undertakers,  or  those  who 
*  undertook '  to  plant,  were  to  bring  over  so  many 
farmers  and  freeholders  from  England  according  to  the 
size  of  their  holding.  Forts  and  houses  were  to  be  built, 
and  horsemen  and  foot-soldiers  were  to  be  held  in  readi- 
ness if  the  natives  threatened  an  attack.  As  the  plan  of 
mixing  English  and  Irish  settlers  in  Leix  and  Offaly  was 
seen  to  be  a  failure,  the  natives  were  ordered  to  leave  the 
plains  and  go  into  the  hills.  No  one  was  to  have  Irish 
tenets,  the  heads  of  each  family  were  to  be  English,  and 
EngUsh  women  were  not  to  marry  amongst  the  Irish. 

Despite  all  precautions  this  plantation  was  also  a  failure. 
There  were  many  disputes  about  boundaries,  for  no  one 
knew  exactly  where  his  lands  lay.  Many  of  the  settlers 
never  visited  their  estates  and  left  them  to  agents,  looking 
upon  them  only  as  a  means  of  making  money.  The 
government  also  failed  to  bring  over  a  sufficient  number 
of  English  colonists,  so  that,  despite  the  rules  of  the  plan- 
tation, the  undertakers  sublet  their  lands  to  Irish  tenants. 
Thus  many  Irish,  as  in  Leix  and  Offaly,  remained  on  their 
old  estates  in  a  subordinate  position,  and  nursed  angry 
feelings   against  those   who   had   taken   their   lands   from 

them* 

The  most  important  and  successful  of  the  Plantations 
of  this  period  was  the  Plantation  of  Ulster,  undertaken 


THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST.  47 

after  the  '  flight  of  the  Earls,'  eai-ly  in  James  I/s  reign 
(1609-1611). 

The  confiscated  lands  lay  in  the  six  counties  of  Donegal, 
Coleraine,  Tyrone,  Armagh,  Cavan,  and  Fermanagh,  and 
included  over  3,000,000  acres. 

There  were  to  be  three  kinds  of  tenants  in  the  lands 
chosen  for  settlement,  roughly  500,000  acres, — (i)  EngHsh 
or  Scotch,  who  were  to  plant  with  English  or  Scotch 
families  ;  (2)  *  Servitors,'  or  military  and  civil  officials 
of  the  government,  who  were  to  plant  also  with  English 
and  Scotch,  but  might  for  an  increased  rent  sublet  to  Irish 
tenants  ;  (3)  the  native  Irish,  who  were  to  become  free- 
holders under  the  Crown.  The  English  and  Scotch 
planters  got  about  160,000  acres  between  them,  which  they 
paid  for  at  the  rate  of  £5.  6s.  8d.  per  1,000  acres.  The  rent 
paid  by  those  servitors  who  sublet  to  Irishmen  was  £S. 
per  every  1,000  acres,  while  the  Irish  tenants,  who  only 
received  one-tenth  of  the  whole  Plantation,  had  to  pay 
at  the  higher  rate  of  £10.  13s.  4d.  What  was  left  went  to 
the  Crown  and  the  Church,  while  Trinity  College,  Dublin, 
founded  in  1591,  and  already  endowed  by  Queen  Elizabeth 
from  confiscated  lands  in  the  South,  received  9,600  acres,* 

The  conditions  for  planters  were  as  follows  : — The 
holders  of  2,000  acres  were  to  build  upon  their  lands  a 
castle  with  a  strong  '  bawn '  or  enclosure  for  cattle  ; 
those  who  held  1,500  acres  a  strong  stone  or  brick  house 
with  a  bawn,  and  those  holding  1,000  acres  at  least  a  bawn. 
All  had  to  keep  and  train  men  for  their  defence.  To  avoid 
the  mistakes  made  in  the  previous  plantations  the  lands 
were  divided  by  lot  to  prevent  quarrelling.  It  was  also 
enacted  that  no  undertaker  was  to  alienate  his  lot  to  an 
Irishman,  and  all  were  within  five  years  to  reside  in  person 

*  The  question  of  the  extent  of  the  original  forfeitures,  and  of  the 
lands  actually  settled,  in  this  and  the  other  Plantations,  has  not  been 
sufficiently  mvestigated  up  to  the  present. 


40  THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST 

on  their  estates.     The  English  and  Irish  were  planted  in 
different  quarters. 

It  must  be  noted  that  the  Government  treated  the  map 
of  Ulster  as  if  it  were  a  sheet  of  blank  paper.  They 
disregarded  the  rights  of  the  tribesmen,  and  gave  each 
undertaker  his  lands  under  the  terms  of  English  law. 
The  Deputy,  Sir  Arthur  Chichester,  had  not  at  all  approved 
of  this  plan.  He  wished  that  the  natives  might  convert 
their  tribal  ownership  into  individual  freeholds  under  the 
Crown,  and  that  what  was  over  should  then  be  granted 
to  the  colonists.  This  would  have  been  a  fairer  and  most 
certainly  a  wiser  policy,  for  the  natives  would  have  had 
everything  to  lose  by  a  rising,  and  so  might  have  remained 
loyal.  The  English  lawyers,  however,  made  light  of  the 
Brehon  law,  and  not  only  gave  a  very  small  part  of  the 
confiscated  lands  back  to  the  natives  at  a  very  high  rent, 
but  banished  the  bulk  of  them  to  the  bogs  and  forests 
to  make  room  for  the  English  and  Scots.  The  result 
was  that  the  Irish  had  nothing  to  lose  by  a  rising,  but 
everything  to  gain,  and  tliey  did  rise  at  the  very  earliest 
opportunity. 

As  soon  as  the  Plantation  began  to  be  carried  out,  it  was 
found  tliat  the  original  scheme  was  impossible.  An 
insufficient  number  of  colonists  came  over,  and  the  under- 
takers had  to  sublet  to  Irish  tenants  and  employ  Irish 
labourers  to  do  the  work  of  their  farms.  The  consequence 
was  that  within  the  space  of  twenty  years  there  were 
actually  more  Irish  than  colonists  in  the  planted  counties. 
Many  of  the  undertakers,  like  those  of  Munster,  were 
also  non-resident.  They  sold  their  claims  or  made  profit 
out  of  them  without  giving  an5rthing  in  return. 

The  most  numerous  settlers  were  the  Scots,  and  it  is 
to  them  that  the  later  prosperity  of  Ulster  is  due.  The 
Church  policy  of  the  early  Stuarts  and  their  insistency 
on  the  power  of  bishops  led  many  Presbyterians  to  settle 


THE  TUDOR   CONQUEST.  49 

in  Ulster,  who  covered  the  land  with  houses,  schools  and 
mills,  persuaded  the  natives  to  work  for  them,  and  gained 
over  many  English  settlers  to  their  Church. 

In  1609  some  London  Companies  undertook  to  plant 
Coleraine,  and  fortified  and  rebuilt  the  old  city  of  Derry, 
henceforth  named  London-Derry.  The  part  played  by 
London  in  the  plantation  of  Ulster  was  very  important, 
for  it  prevented  the  Government  from  losing  sight  of  the 
interests  of  the  colonists,  as  it  might  otherwise  have  done. 

4.    THE  REFORMATION  IN  IRELAND. 

The  causes  which  produced  the  Reformation  in  England 
and  on  the  Continent  did  not  exist  in  Ireland.  There 
were  no  heavy  Papal  taxes  to  rouse  a  spirit  of  opposition 
to  Rome.  There  was  no  great  revival  of  learning  or  output 
of  books  to  foster  criticism  or  lead  men  to  think  for  them- 
selves. There  was  no  strong  national  feeling  which 
demanded  independence  in  religion  as  well  as  in  politics. 
Ireland  was  so  cut  off  from  the  rest  of  Europe  that  her 
people  were  not  influenced  by  Luther's  preaching,  and  the 
wars  with  which  she  had  been  occupied  for  so  long  gave 
them  little  time  for  reUgious  thinking,  or  indeed  for  thinking 
of  any  sort. 

The  hostility  between  the  English  and  Irish  could  not 
be  overcome  by  the  profession  of  a  common  religion. 
By  the  Statute  of  Kilkenny,  no  Irishman  was  allowed  to 
join  an  English  monastery,  and,  similarly,  several  of  the 
Irish  reHgious  houses  refused  to  accept  English  novices 
or  to  obey  English  superiors. 

The  monasteries  were  no  longer  so  remarkable  for  the 
sanctity  and  learning  of  their  inmates  as  they  once  had 
been.  Some  of  the  clergy,  both  Irish  and  English,  took 
sides  in  the  wars,  and  the  religious  houses  suffered  in 
consequence.  Though  the  15th  century  witnessed  a  great 
architectural  revival  in  Ireland,  at  least  in  regard  to 
ecclesiastical  buildings,  yet,  owing  to  the  general  unrest 


50  THE    TUDOR    CONQUEST. 

and  the  neglect  of  the  lay  patrons,  many  of  the  churches 
were  dilapidated.  It  is  said,  for  instance,  that  the  altar 
at  Ardagh  was  exposed  to  the  open  air,  and  that  the 
Cathedral  of  Tuam  had  been  used  as  a  barracks  for  more 
than  300  years,  while  in  1525  the  Earl  of  Kildare  informed 
the  King  that  the  churches  in  Kilkenny  and  Tipperary 
were  in  such  a  state  of  decay  that  no  divine  service  was 
held  there,  and  *  if  the  King's  grace  do  not  provide  a 
remedy,*  he  says,  '  there  is  like  to  be  no  more  Christentie 
there  than  in  the  midst  of  Turkey.'  But  these  reports 
are  probably  exaggerated,  and  it  would  doubtless  be  in- 
correct to  regard  them  as  applicable  to  the  rest  of  the 
country. 

The  Reformation  in  England  and  the  separation  of  the 
English  Church  from  Rome  was  caused  by  Henry  VIII.'s 
desire  to  divorce  his  Queen,  Katherine  of  Aragon,  against 
the  wishes  of  the  Pope.  The  people  at  large  had  but  little 
voice  in  the  change.  Wycliff  and  the  Lollards  had  long 
preached  reform  doctrines,  and  had  attacked  the  authority 
of  the  Pope,  and  their  campaign  could  not  have  failed  to 
produce  some  effects.  Henry  VHI.,  by  the  Act  of 
Supremacy,  declared  himself  '  Head  of  the  Church  of 
England.'  The  Bishops  were  put  under  the  Crown ; 
the  King  took  the  first-fruits  and  twentieths  of  all  benefices, 
formerly  payable  to  the  Pope.  The  monasteries  were 
dissolved,  and  -their  property  confiscated.  But,  except 
for  the  rejection  of  Papal  supremacy,  no  change  was  intro- 
duced. When  the  influence  of  foreign  reformers,  however, 
began  to  be  more  felt  under  Edward  VI.,  the  Mass  was 
abolished,  together  with  some  of  the  sacraments,  the 
churches  were  stripped  of  their  ornaments,  and  a  Book 
of  Common  Prayer  written  in  English  was  introduced. 
Queen  Mary  brought  the  Church  back  to  subjection  to 
Rome,  while  Elizabeth  restored  Henry  VIII.'s  policy, 
re-established  the  royal  authority  over  the  Church,  forbade 
the  Mass  and  the  old  ceremonies,  and  by  the  Act  of  Uni* 


THE  TUDOR  CONQUEST.  51 

formity  made  the  Prayer  Book  compulsory  and  also  the 
Oath  of  Supremacy. 

Religious  toleration  is  quite  a  modern  notion,  and  we 
must  bear  this  carefully  in  mind.  In  those  days  it  was 
thought  that  in  one  State  there  should  only  be  one  Church, 
and  that  is  why  there  were  so  many  civil  wars  of  religion 
on  the  Continent,  so  much  persecution  of  heretics,  and  so 
many  martyrdoms  and  risings.  Heresy  was  regarded  as 
a  political  much  more  than  a  theological  danger,  and  it  was 
determined,  as  a  matter  of  course,  that,  as  England  had 
accepted  the  Reformation,  it  should  be  extended  also  to 
Ireland. 

In  1535  George  Browne  was  appointed  Archbishop 
in  Dublin  to  carry  out  the  King's  wishes,  and  a  Parliament, 
summoned  in  1536,  and  representing  the  Pale,  was  induced 
after  some  difficulty  to  accept  the  religious  innovation. 
Shortly  afterwards,  as  in  England,  the  Irish  monasteries — 
about  400  in  all — were  dissolved.  Their  property  was 
taken  over  by  the  Crown  and  their  lands  granted  or  sold 
to  towns,  nobles,  Irish  chiefs,  and  members  of  the  King's 
Council  in  Dublin.  As  the  Normans  had  originally 
founded  part  of  their  claim  to  Ireland  upon  Adrian's 
Bull,  in  1541  Henry  VIII.  took  the  title  of  'King  of  Ireland  ' 
in  order  to  show  that  he  now  considered  himself  as  King 
in  his  ovv^n  right. 

These  changes  made  little  impression  on  the  great  mass 
of  the  people.  The  meaning  of  the  title  which  the  King 
had  taken  was  not  understood,  and  in  the  native  districts 
many  of  the  monasteries  remained  standing  and  the  old 
services  were  carried  on  as  before.  The  Irish  chiefs, 
to  judge  by  their  actions,  were  not  very  devoted  to  their 
religion,  and  were  not  unwilling  to  share  in  the  plunder 
of  the  monasteries.  Shane  O'Neill,  for  example,  though 
he  had  made  a  great  display  of  attending  Mass  in  London, 
found  himself  in  conflict  with  Archbishop  Creagh  of 
Armagh,  while  the  eighth  Earl  of  Kildare  had  burnt  Cash^^ 


53  THE   TUDOR   CONQUEST. 

Cathedral,  and,  it  is  said,  excused  himself  to  Henry  VII. 
by  affirming  that  he  only  did  it  because  he  thought  the 
Archbishop  was  within. 

Under  Edward  VI.  the  EngUsh  measures  were  again 
introduced  into  Ireland.  The  Deputy,  Sir  Anthony 
St.  Leger,  proclaimed  that  the  Liturgy  was  to  be  read  in 
English,  and  that  the  religious  pictures  and  images  in  the 
churches  were  to  be  removed.  This  last  enactment  was 
very  unpopular.  An  image  of  the  Virgin  at  Trim,  which 
was  supposed  to  work  miracles,  was  destroyed ;  the 
crozier  with  which  St.  Patrick  was  said  to  have  banished 
the  snakes  was  burnt ;  a  holy  cross  w^hich  was  much 
reverenced  in  Tipperary  was  taken  away,  and  the  beautiful 
Abbey  of  Clonmacnoise  was  razed  to  the  ground,  and 
various  other  churches  and  shrines  pillaged  by  the  soldiers. 
Still  there  were  no  great  risings  as  in  England,  for  the 
people  were  powerless  as  long  as  their  leaders  were  not 
united. 

In  1560,  at  a  Parliament  summoned  in  Dublin,  the 
church  poUcy  of  Elizabeth  was  confirmed — that  is  to  say, 
the  Act  of  Uniformity  and  the  Oath  of  Supremacy  were 
made  to  apply  to  Ireland  ;  also  the  system  of  fines  for 
non-attendance  at  church,  though  often  there  was  no  church 
to  attend. 

It  has  been  pointed  out  that  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII. 
the  Irish  took  little  notice  of  royal  supremacy,  but  in  the 
days  of  EHzabeth  matters  were  entirely  different.  The 
expulsion  of  the  clergy  from  the  churches  had  shown 
clearly  that  grave  changes  were  being  undertaken.  The 
people  became  more  determined  in  their  resistance  to  the 
religion  that  the  English  Government  tried  to  force  upon 
them,  and  the  action  of  Pius  V.,  in  excommunicating 
Elizabeth  and  releasing  her  subjects  from  their  allegiance, 
strengthened  them  in  their  opposition. 

Ireland  at  the  time  also  came  under  the  influence  of 
the  Counter-Reformation.    The  Counter-Reformation  was 


THE   TUDOR   CONQUEST.  53 

a  movement  within  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  itself, 
first  for  reform,  and  secondly  to  recover  the  losses  inliictcd 
upon  the  Church  and  her  possessions  by  the  Protestants. 
The  Jesuits  were  the  great  missionaries  of  the  movement, 
and  Jesuit  priests  travelled  all  over  Europe  and  as  far  as 
India  and  South  America  to  extend  the  power  of  their 
Church.  The  Counter- Reformation  was  also  a  political 
movement ;  Philip  II.  of  Spain  constituted  himself  the 
great  Catholic  champion,  though  at  the  same  time  he  had 
at  heart  as  much  the  interests  of  Spain  as  those 
of  the  CathoHc  Church.  Many  of  the  clergy  in  Ireland 
looked  to  Philip  II.  for  reHef.  One  of  them  even  declared 
that  Philip  intended  with  his  army  *  to  overrun  Ireland 
and  make  that  realm  his  ladder  or  bridge  into  England.* 
In  January,  1561,  Pius  IV.  despatched  the  Irish  Jesuit, 
David  Wolfe,  to  serve  in  Ireland.  He  was  to  encourage 
the  people  to  stand  firm,  and  to  bring  about  a  league 
amongst  the  chieftains  for  the  defence  of  the  old  religion. 
After  this,  friars  and  Jesuits  flocked  to  Ireland  and  obtained 
influence  over  all  classes.  They  estabhshed  schools  for 
the  poor,  urged  the  chiefs  to  rebel  by  telling  them  that  they 
would  lose  their  lands,  and  gained  over  the  Catholic  gentry 
of  the  Pale  who  were  dissatisfied  with  the  government. 
So  great  was  their  influence  that  in  1588,  after  the  defeat 
of  the  Spanish  Armada,  the  leading  citizens  of  Dublin 
refused  to  attend  the  Thanksgiving  Service  in  Christ 
Church  Cathedral,  and  in  1610  the  same  city — which  had 
always  been  noted  for  its  loyalty  and  strong  English 
character — was  described  by  an  English  traveller  as  a 
mere  '  nest  of  Papists  and  ale-houses.' 

The  Counter-Reformation  helped  to  arouse  the  religious 
enthusiasm  of  the  Irish  people,  and  the  attempt  of  the 
Enghsh  government  to  force  the  Reformation  upon  the 
people  did  more  to  unite  them  and  bring  them  together 
into  a  nation  than  anything  else  which  had  ever  happened 
in  the  country. 


24  THE  REBELLION   OF    164I, 


CHAPTER  V. 


THE   REBELLION   OF   1641    AND   THE 
GROMWELLIAN    SETTLEMENT. 


I.    THE  INTRODUCTION  OF  ENGLISH  IDEAS. 

Travellers  in  Ireland  at  tins  time  all  tell  us  that  the 
people  were  still  very  primitive.  They  wore  poor  clothing 
and  ate  simple  food.  They  lived  in  mud  cabins,  where 
they  slept  on  the  ground,  and  when  they  lit  a  fire  on  the 
hearth  the  smoke  escaped  out  of  the  door  or  through  a 
hole  in  the  roof.  Those  settled  on  the  tribe  lands,  which 
they  still  owned  in  conmion,  tilled  the  ground,  but  their 
agriculture  was  so  rude  that  their  ploughs,  for  instance, 
were  often  tied  to  their  horses'  tails  instead  of  yoking 
them  in  the  English  fashion.  Many  of  them  moved  from 
place  to  place  with  their  cattle,  having  no  fixed  home, 
but  erecting  huts  of  turf  or  boughs,  in  which  they  lived 
till  the  grass  vv^as  eaten  down,  when  they  moved  off  to 
fresh  pastures. 

They  were  still  ruled  by  their  Brehon  customs,  to  which 
they  were  extremely  attached,  and  had  the  English 
enforced  their  law  not  only  in  the  Pale  but  all  over  Ireland,' 
the  people  would  probably  not  have  obeyed  it.  Through- 
out the  middle  ages,  except  for  five  families  supposed 
to  be  descended  from  the  royal  races  of  Ireland,  the  bulk 
of  the  Irish  were  not  allowed  to  sue  freely  in  the  English 
courts,  nor  to  claim  the  full  benefits  of  royal  protection. 
That  is  to  say,  that  they  were  looked  upon  as  villeins  or 
serls  who  had  no  status  in  Feudal  law. 


THE   REBELLION   OF    1 64 1.  55 

This  was  the  mediaeval  way  of  dealing  with  subject 
peoples.  But  in  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries 
the  Kings,  from  motives  of  prudence  and  of  foreign  policy, 
did  everything  to  unite  their  subjects  and  bring  them  all 
under  one  system  of  government.  The  Irish  were  now 
the  immediate  subjects  of  the  EngHsh  Crown,  and  so  it 
was  natural,  according  to  the  ideas  of  the  period,  that 
English  Laws  and  Institutions  should  be  extended  all  over 
the  country.  James  I.  declared  all  the  Irish  his  subjects ; 
he  introduced  the  English  Land  System ;  the  tribal  lands 
were  divided  into  shires,  and  Freehold  Estates,  with  a  head 
rent  to  the  Crown,  were  created,  over  which  the  owners 
had  full  control  and  the  power  of  bequeathing  them  to 
their  children.  English  Courts  were  established  every- 
where, and  the  Jury  System  v^as  introduced.  The  old 
Brehon  Law  was  abolished  ;  the  '  Erics  '  or  fines  were  done 
away  with  ;  the  practices  of  *  Tanistry  '  and  '  Gavelkind  ' 
v/ere  forbidden. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  Ireland  was  very  far 
behind  England  in  civilization,  and  though  all  these 
changes  were  well  meant,  according  to  modern  notions, 
it  would  have  been  better  if  they  had  been  introduced 
gradually,  and  with  the  consent  of  the  Irish  themselves. 
The  old  tribal  system  had  many  faults,  but  instead  of 
being  completely  swept  away,  its  best  features  might 
have  been  preserved,  and  the  Irish  might  have  been  taught 
in  their  own  language  the  advantage  of  settled  tenures  and 
other  English  ideas  concerning  property  and  government. 
The  new  English  civilization  was  not  suitable  to  the  needs 
of  the  people,  who  did  not  understand  it,  and  who  re- 
volted against  it.  The  poorer  tribesmen  had  not  been 
considered  at  all.  Their  share  in  the  common  lands  had 
been  taken  away,  and  their  new  position  of  tenants-at- 
will  was  not  at  all  to  their  liking. 

As  time  went    on  fresh   confiscations   and   wlantatioBs 


56 


THE  PvEBELLION  OF    1 64 1. 


were  made,  and  for  no  other  reason  save  that  colonists 
or  EngUsh  adventurers  wanted  more  land.  Royal  com- 
missions were  appointed,  and  a  body  of  men  sprang  up 
called  *  Discoverers  '  who  examined  the  titles  to  estates,  some 


of  which  went  as  far  back  as  the  Norman  Conquest,  and  if 
the  slightest  flaw  could  be  found  in  them  the  Crown 
promptly  seized   these   lands   for   itself.     This   caused   a 


THE  REBELLION  OF   1 64 1.  57 

great  feeling  of  insecurity,  for  no  one  knew  when  his  own 
lands  might  be  taken  or  upon  what  pretext. 

The  Roman  Catholics  were  aggrieved  by  the  fact  that  the 
Anglican  Church  was  the  only  one  recognised  by  law,  and 
they  became  more  and  more  hostile  when  they  saw  that 
the  Oaths  of  Uniformity  and  Supremacy  banned  them  from 
all  offices  and  from  practising  in  the  Law  Courts.  Many 
of  their  churches  were  taken,  they  had  to  pay  fines  for  non- 
attendance  at  the  English  services,  and  all  priests  were 
ordered   to    leave   the   country. 

The  interests  both  of  old  Anglo-Irish  and  natives  were 
now  neglected  by  the  government  in  favour  of  those  of 
the  loyal  Protestants  of  the  new  Plantations.  James  had 
created  a  number  of  Boroughs  to  return  members  to 
Parliament  who  would  do  as  he  wished  ;  thus  the  Irish 
House  of  Commons  was  packed  with  royal  nominees  or 
members  from  the  English  Plantations  or  colonies. 

All  these  grievances,  and  especially  those  connected 
with  the  land  and  with  religion,  led  to  the  great  rebeUion 
of  1641. 

2.    THE   'GRACES.' 

The  Stuarts  tried  to  rule  as  absolutely  as  the  Tudors, 
but  times  had  changed,  and  the  people  wanted  more  power. 
James  I.  and  Charles  I.  also  carried  on  very  unpopular 
wars,  and  as  they  were  afraid  to  summon  their  Parlia- 
ments too  often,  they  were  always  distressed  for  money. 
In  1626,  when  a  war  with  both  France  and  Spain  seemed 
likely,  Charles  saw  that  his  army  in  Ireland  should  be 
increased.  It  was  therefore  suggested  that  the  Irish 
Parliament  (where  there  was  a  good  deal  of  opposition 
to  the  Crown  from  the  Anglo-Irish  and  Roman  Catholics) 
should  give  a  grant  of  money  in  return  for  certain  privi- 
leges or  'graces.'  In  May,  1628,  it  was  definitely  agreed 
that  the  King  should  have  j£  120,000  to  support  an  army. 


58  THE  REBELLION   OF    164I. 

For  this,  among  other  concessions,  a  new  oath  of  allegiance 
was  substituted  for  the  old  Oath  of  Supremacy,  and  to 
set  fears  at  rest  about  further  plantations,  the  King's  title 
to  land  was  never  to  be  set  up  where  an  owner's  family  had 
already  been  60  years  in  possession. 

A  Parliament  was  called  in  1629  to  confirm  the  *  Graces,' 
but  it  never  assembled,  for  the  English  Council  declared 
that  the  King's  licence  under  the  Great  Seal  had  not  been 
given,  and  so  Poynings'  Law  had  been  violated.  Charles  I. 
was  held  to  have  broken  his  word,  and  the  discontent  in 
Ireland  steadily  increased. 

3.    THE   RULE  OF  WENTWORTH. 

In  1632  Sir  Thomas  Wentworth  was  appointed  Lord 
Deputy.  He  was  a  minister  after  Charles'  own  heart. 
Like  Richelieu,  the  great  French  statesman,  he  put  the 
royal  service  above  every  other  interest,  and  v/ished  to 
make  the  King  absolute,  and  to  rule  himself  as  an  absolute 
minister.  He  intended  to  make  Ireland  2  source  of 
strength  and  gain  to  the  Crown  ;  to  raise  money  there 
which  would  make  the  King  independent  of  Parliaments 
in  England,  and  to  build  up  an  army  which  would  be  useful 
in  any  difficulty  that  might  arise. 

Though  Wentworth  was  a  despot,  and  his  chief  care  was 
for  the  King,  he  thought  of  the  Irish  people  also,  and 
wished  to  rule  for  their  good.  He  considered  that  Ireland 
was  not  fitted  for  the  English  institutions  which  had  been 
lately  introduced,  and  he  did  not  think  that  the  natives 
could  rule  themselves.  He  was  a  great  believer  in 
government,  but  government  from  above  and  in  the  hands 
of  one  person.  In  accordance  with  his  scheme,  he 
managed  to  raise  the  material  prosperity  of  the  country. 
He  promoted  the  Linen  industry  in  the  North  ;  he  im- 
ported flax-seed  from  Holland ;  he  brought  over  Flemish 
weavers,  and  caused  mills  to  be  erected.     He  arranged  a 


THE  REBELLION  OF   1 64 1  59 

commercial  treaty  with  Spain  to  encourage  the  fishing 
industry,  and  by  placing  ships  to  guard  the  coasts,  he  cleared 
the  Channel  of  pirates,  who  were  wont  to  prey  on  all  ships 
passing  to  and  fro,  and  so  to  hinder  trade.  At  home  he 
encouraged  Agriculture,  and  tried  to  improve  the  breeds 
of  cattle  and  preserve  the  forests.  He  insisted  on  a  free 
export  of  hides  and  tallow,  and  though  he  suppressed  the 
woollen  industry,  which  was  not  of  much  importance  at 
this  time,  he  did  more  for  Irish  Trade  than  any  other 
English  governor  had  ever  done.  Under  his  administra- 
tion taxation  decreased,  shipping  improved,  and  the 
custom  dues  were  four  times  as  much  as  they  had  formerly 
been. 

He  paid  much  attention  to  the  Army  ;  he  improved  the 
men's  discipline,  and  also  the  quality  of  arms  and  armour, 
and  he  raised  the  number  of  the  forces  from  2,400  to 
9,000  men. 

Like  most  absolute  ministers,  he  believed  in  uniformity 
in  rehgion,  and  so  he  introduced  the  High  Church  services 
and  ceremonial  which  his  friend  Archbishop  Laud  had 
established  in  England.  He  restored  churches  which  had 
fallen  into  disrepair,  and  gave  back  some  church  property 
which  had  been  taken  away  by  laymen.  He  offended 
both  the  Presbyterians  and  the  Roman  Catholics  by  his 
strictness  in  church  matters,  but  he  cared  little  as  long 
as  his  end  was  secured. 

To  gain  money  for  the  King  he  thought  of  carrying  out 
fresh  plantations,  and,  despite  the  promises  which  had 
been  made,  he  wrung  money  out  of  the  landowners  and 
set  up,  often  unjustly,  the  claims  of  the  Crown.  His 
chief  method,  however,  of  raising  revenue  was  through 
the  Irish  Parliament  itself.  Charles  L  was  always  opposed 
by  his  ParUaments  in  England,  but  Wentworth  saw  that  the 
Parliament  in  Dublin,  held  down  as  it  was  by  Poynings' 
Act,  could  not  be  dangerous  to  the  King.     On  July  14th, 


6o  THE  REBELLION   OF    164I. 

1634,  a  Parliament  was  summoned,  and  by  dividing  the 
sessions,  one  for  supply,  and  the  other  for  the  redress  of 
grievances,  Wentworth  was  able  to  secure  six  subsidies, 
^270,000  in  all.  Once  the  money  was  voted  nothing  was 
said  about  the  '  Graces.'  The  Roman  Catholic  members 
were  enraged,  but  Wentworth  secured  a  balance  in  his 
favour  by  urging  all  Protestant  members  to  attend.  This 
Parliament  was  dissolved  in  April,  1635. 

Meanwhile,  Charles  I.  was  trying  to  rule  without  a 
Parliament  in  England,  and  raising  money  in  all  sorts  of 
illegal  w^ays.  Archbishop  Laud  was  hated  for  his  church 
policy,  which  Charles  soon  tried  to  impose  upon  the 
Scots.  This  led  to  the  signing  of  *  The  Covenant '  in 
Scotland  in  1638,  and  the  open  rebellion  which  soon  broke 
out.  Charles  was  at  his  wits'  end.  He  was  now  at  enmity 
both  with  the  Scots  and  with  his  own  subjects.  He  looked 
to  Wentworth  for  money  and  for  troops. 

In  1639  the  Lord  Deputy  became  Earl  of  Strafford  and 
the  chief  adviser  of  the  King.  He  summoned  another 
Parliament  in  Dublin  in  March,  1640,  and  now  managed 
the  elections  so  that  the  Roman  Catholics  were  the  more 
povrerful  party.  The  Catholics  hated  the  Scots  and  their 
religion,  and  so  they  decided  to  help  the  King.  j£i 80,000 
was  voted,  and  the  army  was  increased  and  put  in  readiness 
for  war.  Charles'  idea  was  to  lean  on  the  support  of  the 
Irish  Roman  CathoHcs  and  to  use  their  aid  against  Pro- 
testant England  and  Scotland.  He  was  forced,  however,  to 
come  to  humiliating  terms  with  the  Scots  at  Ripon  ;  thus 
Strafford  had  shown  the  King's  plans  and  collected  an  army 
to  no  purpose.  The  Long  Parliament  met  in  London  on 
November  3rd,  1640,  and  he  was  summoned  to  stand 
his  trial,  which  began  in  March,  1641.  He  was  impeached 
on  various  charges,  but  the  real  grievance  against  him  was 
his  absolute  government,  and  the  fact  that  he  had  collected 
a  large  native  Irish  army  for  the  King.  He  was  beheaded 
in  May,  1641. 


THE  REBELLION  OF    164I.  61 

His  rule  in  Ireland  had,  on  the  whole,  been  a  success.  He 
had  enforced  order  and  secured  obedience  to  English  law. 
He  had  cleared  off  the  Irish  debt  and  increased  the 
revenues,  and  he  had  carried  out  the  other  reforms  which 
have  already  been  mentioned.  His  whole  government 
had  depended  on  the  King's  support.  It  failed  because 
of  the  weakness  of  Charles.  When  Strafford  left  Ireland 
there  was  nobody  to  continue  his  work,  and  the  country 
fell  back  to  its  former  state  of  dissatisfaction  and  disorder. 

4.    THE  REBELLION   OF   1641. 

The  explosion  in  Ireland  which  had  been  preparing 
for  so  long  burst  out  in  1641.  The  King  was  in  great 
difficulties  with  the  EngUsh  Parliament,  and  the  Irish  had 
before  them  the  example  of  the  Scots,  who  had  just  risen 
in  defence  of  their  religion.  It  was  believed,  too,  that 
the  Puritans,  who  had  now  got  the  upper  hand  in  England, 
had  plans  for  the  rooting  out  of  the  Roman  Catholic  faith, 
and  were  also  considering  fresh  confiscations. 

A  plot  for  a  rebellion  had  been  hatching  in  Ulster  for 
some  time.  The  leaders  were  nearly  all  the  descendants 
of  chiefs  who  had  lost  their  lands  through  the  various 
plantations.  Among  the  most  important  were  Rory 
0' Moore,  the  head  of  the  tribe  that  had  once  held  Queen's 
County  ;  he  was  a  noble  and  accomplished  man,  who, 
when  the  rising  broke  out,  tried  to  unite  all  parties  and 
repress  violence  ;  Lord  Maguire,  an  extravagant  young 
noble  who  was  ready  for  any  disturbance,  and  Phelim 
O'Neill,  the  leader  in  the  north  till  the  arrival  of  Owen 
Roe,  nephew  of  the  last  Earl  of  Tyrone.  It  v/as  deter- 
mined to  turn  out  the  Protestant  settlers,  and  regain  the 
confiscated  estates,  also  to  secure  freedom  for  the  Roman 
CathoUc  faith  and  for  the  Parliament  in  Dublin.  The 
plan  was  to  seize  Dublin  Castle,  with  its  stores  of  powder 
and  arms,  and  then  to  rouse  the  Irish  in  Ulster  to  a  general 
rebellioa 


62  THE   REBELLION  OF    1 64 1 

The  attack  on  the  Castle  was  disclosed  by  an  informer, 
and  some  of  the  leaders  were  taken,  but  on  the  22nd 
October  the  Rising  in  Ulster  began.  The  forts  were 
seized  and  some  of  the  towns  captured.  Houses  belonging 
to  Protestants  were  burnt  and  sacked,  and  many  thou- 
sands of  the  colonists  were  driven  from  their  homes. 
Their  cattle,  corn,  furniture,  and  even  their  clothes,  were 
taken,  and  many  of  them  were  murdered,  while  others 
perished  from  cold  and  hunger  in  the  winter  weather. 
The  English  troops  soon  appeared,  and  on  their  side  were 
also  guilty  of  great  cruelties. 

The  rebellion  now  spread  to  other  districts  in  Leinster 
and  Munster  which  had  been  planted  by  the  English. 
The  old  English  and  gentry  of  the  Pale,  who  had  at  first 
held  aloof,  then  threw  in  their  lot  with  the  rebels.  As 
Roman  Catholics  they  hated  and  feared  the  Puritans  and 
also  the  new  colonists  who  had  taken  their  place.  The 
Lords  Justices  in  Dublin*  had  treated  them  with  suspicion 
and  had  practically  forbidden  them  to  defend  themselves. 

By  the  beginning  of  1642  there  were  four  distinct  parties 
in  Ireland  : — (i)  The  Purely  Irish  Party,  the  old  Celts, 
backed  by  a  great  body  of  the  clergy,  who  cared  more  for 
the  complete  freedom  of  their  religion  and  the  restoration 
of  their  lands  than  for  the  interests  of  the  King  ;  (2)  The  Old 
English  Party,  or  Anglo-Irish,  who  were  loyal  to  England, 
but  who  wished  for  freedom  for  religious  toleration, 
and  for  a  Parliament  in  which  they  and  not  the  new  English 
would  have  the  upper  hand  ;  (3)  The  Royalist  Party, 
mainly  Protestants,  who  stood  by  the  King  ;  (4)  The 
Puritan  Party,  which  was  for  the  Parliament,  and  included 
the  Presbyterians  and  Scots  of  Ulster. 

The  first  party  chose  Owen  Roe  O'Neill  for  their  general. 
He,  Hke  many  other  Irish  exiles,  had  entered  the  Spanish 

♦  Wandesford,  Strafford's  trusted  deputy,  had  died  suddenly  in 
December,  1640,  and  the  country  was  in  the  hands  of  two  corrupt  and 
incompetent  Lords  Justices,  P'     ons  and  Borlase- 


THE  REBELLION  OF    164I.  63 

service  and  had  gained  many  years  of  training  as  a  soldier 
in  the  Netherlands.  The  second  party  chose  Thomas 
Preston  as  their  leader  ;  he  had  also  served  in  the  Nether- 
lands, and  was  a  son  of  the  fourth  Viscount  Gormanston, 
one  of  the  lords  of  the  Pale.  The  Earl  of  Ormond  led  the 
Royalists,  while  the  Parliamentarians  in  the  North  were 
commanded  by  the  Scotsman,  General  Munroe. 

The  first  two  parties,  though  nominally  united,  differed 
radically  in  their  aims,  and  soon  began  to  diverge  in  policy. 
They  managed,  however,  to  keep  together  for  a  time,  and  a 
General  Assembly  of  Confederate  Catholics  met  at  Kil- 
kenny in  October,  1642.  The  Confederation  of  Kilkenny, 
as  it  was  called,  was  composed  of  members  from  every 
county  and  borough,  and  it  was  the  first  national  assembly 
of  the  Irish  that  had  ever  been  held.  It  created  a  Supreme 
Council  to  carry  on  the  government  and  the  war.  It 
declared  itself  hostile  to  the  Long  Parliament  in  England, 
but  stated  its  loyalty  to  the  King  and  sent  him  a  petition 
to  consider  Irish  grievances. 

Charles  I.  was  in  a  very  difficult  position  ;  he  cared 
nothing  for  the  Irish,  but  wanted  to  use  the  Irish  army 
against  his  enemies  in  Scotland  and  England.  If  he 
came  to  terms  with  the  Catholics,  however,  he  would 
lose  the  little  support  which  he  still  had  at  home.  He  deter- 
mined, therefore,  to  bargain  with  the  Irish,  and  carried  on 
his  negotiations  through  the  Earl  of  Ormond.* 

Meanwhile  fighting  was  going  on  all  over  the  country. 
Preston  opposed  the  Royalists  in  Leinster,  while  Owen 
Roe  was  engaged  with  Munroe  in  the  north.  In  Sep- 
tember, 1643,  a  *  Cessation  of  Arms'  was  arranged, 
and  Charles,  more  anxious  than  ever  to  obtain  an  Irish 
army,  in  August,  1645,  sent  over  the  Earl  of  Glamorgan 
secretly  to  treat  with  the  rebels.  Glamorgan,  unknown 
to  Ormond,  pledged  the  King  to  grant  all  the  Confederate 

*  James  Butler,  12th  Ear)  and  ist  Duke  of  Ormond  Ci6io-i688). 


64  THE  REBELLION  OF    1 64 1. 

demands  and  secured  in  return  a  promise  for  10,000  men. 
In  October,  however,  a  copy  of  this  treaty  was  found. 
The  King  professed  to  know  nothing  about  it,  but  he  was 
not  believed,  and  his  English  subjects  distrusted  him  more 
than  ever. 

In  November,  1645,  the  Pope  sent  over  Archbishop 
Rinuccini  as  Nuncio,  with  plenty  of  money  and  stores.  The 
Archbishop  cared  for  nothing  except  the  Roman  Catholic 
religion,  and  he  was  for  continuing  the  war  to  secure  for 
Catholics  as  many  concessions  as  possible.  The  members 
of  the  Supreme  Council,  however,  wished  to  make  peace, 
for  Charles  had  been  beaten  by  the  Parliament  army 
at  the  Battle  of  Naseby,  and  they  saw  that  it  was  hopeless 
to  go  on  with  the  struggle.  The  Confederates,  therefore, 
split  into  two  parties.  The  Nuncio  summoned  Owen 
Roe  to  his  aid,  and  calling  a  meeting  of  the  clergy  to 
Waterford,  he  created  another  Supreme  Council,  with 
himself  as  head. 

On  June  5th,  1646,  Owen  Roe  crushed  Munroe  and  the 
Scots  at  Benburb,  on  the  northern  Blackwater.  This  was 
the  only  great  success  of  the  Confederates  in  the  war. 
Dublin  was  next  attacked  by  the  rebels,  and  as  the  King  was 
now  a  prisoner,  Ormond  handed  the  city  over  to  the  Par- 
liamentary Commissioners  and  left  the  country,  July,  1647. 

The  King's  cause,  however,  was  revived  owing  to  the 
quarrels  of  English  parties  amongst  themselves.  Ormond 
returned  in  September,  1648,  and  after  the  execution  of 
Charles,  January  30th,  1649,  had  his  son  proclaimed  in 
Ireland  as  Charles  II.  In  February,  1649,  Rinuccini 
took  his  departure,  for  the  success  of  the  Parliament  had 
united  all  parties  under  the  Protestant  Ormond.  The 
Legate  had  hoped  to  secure  the  re-establishment  of  the 
Catholic  religion  as  the  State  religion  in  Ireland,  but  he 
saw  that  this  was  impossible.  Ormond,  who  had  at  last 
come  to  terms  with  Owen  Roe,  was  now  master  of  at  least 
nine-tenths  of  Ireland,  and  he  had  11,000  men  under  arms. 


THE  CROMWELLIAN  SETTLEMENT.  65 

He  was  preparing,  indeed,  for  a  great  expedition  against 
the  Parliamentary  forces,  when  he  was  utterly  defeated  by 
their  General,  Michael  Jones,  at  the  Battle  of  Rathinines 
on  August  2nd,  1649. 

5.    CROMWELL  AND  THE  ACT  OF  SETTLEMENT. 

A  Commonw-^Jth  or  Republic  had  just  been  established 
in  England,  and  in  order  to  crush  out  the  Royalists  it  was 
necessary  to  subdue  Ireland,  where  so  many  were  now 
for  the  cause  of  the  King.  The  Irish  army  was  dreaded 
as  in  the  days  of  Strafford,  and  Ireland  could  not  be  allowed 
to  continue  in  a  state  of  rebellion  and  to  treat  with  foreigners 
just  as  she  pleased. 

In  August,  1649,  therefore,  the  great  ParHamentary 
General,  Oliver  Cromwell,  landed  in  DubUn  with  12,000 
men.  He  and  his  soldiers  were  Puritans  ;  they  hated  the 
Irish,  not  only  as  rebels  but  as  CathoUcs,  and  they  professed 
to  beHeve  that  it  was  God's  will  that  they  should  extirpate 
Catholicism  in  Ireland. 

Ormond  had  thrown  his  best  troops  into  Drogheda 
under  the  royalist  officer.  Sir  Arthur  Aston.  Cromwell, 
therefore,  marched  North  and  began  to  besiege  Drogheda 
on  the  3rd  September.  The  town  fell  in  a  few  days,  and 
Cromwell  ordered  the  English  garrison  to  be  slain.  Priests 
were  also  murdered,  women  were  thrown  over  the  walls, 
and  children  were  cruelly  slaughtered.  There  is  no  doubt 
but  that  Cromwell  and  his  soldiers  were  guilty  of  terrible 
cruelties,  but  we  must  remember,  as  in  the  days  of  Elizabeth, 
that  war  was  carried  on  everywhere  with  great  savagery. 
The  French  put  down  the  Huguenots  in  the  Cevennes 
just  as  cruelly,  and  all  over  Europe  massacres  took  place, 
and  many  hundreds  of  people  were  even  burnt  as  witches 
and  magicians,  though  they  had  done  no  public  wrong. 

F 


/ 


66  THE    CROMWELL  I  AN  SETTLEMENT. 

After  the  fall  of  Drogheda,  Gromwell  marched  South, 
keeping  to  the  coast,  and  attacked  Wexford,  which  was  the 
home  of  many  of  the  pirates  who  roamed  about  the  channel. 
The  town  soon  fell,  and  the  garrison  here  also  was  put  to 
the  sword.  The  Irish  were  thoroughly  cowed  by 
Cromweirs  drastic  methods,  and  town  after  town  sub- 
mitted. In  the  South,  New  Ross,  Kilkenny,  and  Clon- 
mel ;  in  the  North,  Lisburn,  Belfast,  Trim,  Dundalk, 
CarHngford,  and  Newry.  Cromwell  was  a  great  general, 
and  to  this  he  owed  his  success,  as  well  as  to  the  fact  that 
he  allowed  no  marauding ;  his  soldiers  were  always  able 
to  get  supplies,  for  he  made  them  pay  for  whatever  they 
took  from  the  people.  The  Irish,  as  usual,  also  began 
to  quarrel  among  themselves.  Had  the  old  English  and 
the  natives  held  together  they  could  have  won  good  terms 
for  the  Irish  Catholics  from  the  EngUsh,  weakened  as 
England  was  by  civil  war  ;  divided,  they  could  do  nothing 
for  their  cause. 

On  May  26th,  1650,  Cromwell  was  called  away  by  an 
expedition  against  Scotland.  He  left  his  son-in-law, 
Ireton  behind  to  finish  the  conquest  he  had  begun.  The 
struggle  dragged  on  for  another  two  years.  Ireton  took 
Carlow,  Waterford,  and  Duncannon,  while  Coote  and 
Venables  subdued  the  North.  Soon  the  line  of  the 
Shannon  was  forced ;  Limerick  fell  after  a  long  siege, 
and  the  capture  of  Athlone  and  then  Galway  put  an  end 
to  the  war. 

The  country  was  in  a  frightful  condition.  About  one- 
third  of  the  people  had  perished  either  in  the  wars  or  from 
famine  and  plague.  The  fields  were  desolate,  corpses 
lay  unburied,  and  packs  of  wolves  prowled  everywhere, 
even  up  to  the  walls  of  Dublin. 

Ireland  liad  again  been  dangerous  to  England  in  times 
of  difficulty  and  war ;  nearly  the  whole  of  the  Irish  people 
had  been  in  arms  against  the   Commonwealth,  and  the 


THE  CROMWELLIAN  SETTLEMENT.  67 

whole  country  was  at  last  reduced  to  submission.  Under 
these  circumstances,  Cromwell  determined  to  drive  out 
the  native  owners  to  make  way  for  Puritan  settlers.  In 
1642  the  Long  Parliament  had  already  decreed  the  con- 
fiscation of  the  estates  of  the  rebels,  and  in  1652  the  Act 
for  *  the  settling  of  Ireland  '  proceeded  to  arrange  for  a 
settlement  or  plantation. 

The  Cromweliian  Settlement  was  the  largest  that  had 
ever  been  made.  All  those  v^ho  had  taken  part  in  the  war 
had  their  estates  confiscated.  Ten  sounties  were  set 
apart  for  new  settlers  in  Waterford,  Queen's  and  King's 
Counties,  Limerick,  Meath,  Westmeath,  Tipperary, 
Armagh,  Down,  and  Antrim.  Those  who  w^ere  to  receive 
these  lands  at  very  low  rents  were  chiefly  (i)  soldiers 
whose  pay  was  in  arrears,  and  (2)  adventurers  who  had 
advanced  money  for  the  war.  Thus,  about  40,000  new 
owners  were  scattered  over  three-fourths  of  Ireland. 
The  details  of  the  Settlement  were  arranged  by  the  Act 
of  Satisfaction  passed  in  September,  1653,  and  Sir  William 
Petty  drew  up  a  survey*  for  the  government  in  order  that 
the  lots  might  be  as  fairly  distributed  as  possible.  The 
old  Anglo-Irish  and  the  natives  were  to  be  transplanted 
or  exiled.  The  peasantry,  who  would  be  useful  to  the 
settlers,  were  in  some  parts  allowed  to  remain,  but  the  gentry 
and  their  families  were  ordered  to  move  across  the  Shannon 
into  Connaught  and  Clare,  where  small  plots  of  waste  lands 
were  given  to  them.  A  number  of  English  soldiers  were 
settled  in  a  fringe  round  the  Western  coast,  so  that  the  Irish 
were  held  in  between  the  Shannon  and  the  sea,  and  could 
receive  no  aid  from  abroad.  Thus  they  would  have  little 
chance  of  success  if  they  were  again  to  rise.  The  towns, 
such  as  Waterford  and  Cork,  were  also  cleared,  and  large 
bodies  of  Irish  merchants  went  to  the  Continent. 

♦  This  was  the  celebrated  '  Down  Survey/  so  called  because  it  was 
measured  *  down  '  on  maps. 


68 


THE  CROMWELLIAN    SETTLEMENT. 


As  in  the  case  of  the  other  Plantations,  many  of  the  old 
inhabitants  clung  to  their  old  homes  and  were  employed 
as  servants  by  English  masters.     Many  Catholics  remained 


under  the  protection  of  their  English  neighbours,  the  English 
soldiers  married  Irish  women,  and  such  a  mixture  of  English 
and  Irish  took  place  that  forty  years  later  many  children  of 
the  original  settlers  could  speak  no  other  tongue  but  Irish. 


THE   CROMWELLIAN    SETTLEMENT.  69 

To  get  rid  of  the  Irish  army,  about  30,000  men  were 
allowed  to  leave  the  country,  and  these  entered  the  service 
of  France,  Spain,  and  other  nations.  Many  young  and 
landless  people  were  shipped  off  to  the  new  English  settle- 
ments in  the  West  Indies,  and  all  priests  were  ordered  to  take 
their  departure.  Many  of  them  stayed  at  home,  however,  at 
the  risk  of  their  lives,  and  some  of  the  soldiers,  called 
'Tories,'  or  outlaws,  hid  in  the  bogs  and  forests,  and  did 
their  best  to  rob  and  murder  the  settlers  and  to  destroy 
their  property. 

A  strong  government  was  at  last  set  up  in  Ireland, 
law  and  order  were  maintained,  and,  as  under  Strafford, 
the  wealth  of  the  country  rapidly  increased.  The  English 
Protestants  were  now  the  most  important  part  of  the 
population— the  old  English  and  the  Irish  Catholics  were 
looked  upon  as  inferior  and  as  of  a  different  race.  Their 
lands  had  been  taken  from  them,  and  their  religion  had 
been  proscribed.  This  gave  them  a  common  feeling  and 
a  common  grievance,  w^hich  gradually  united  them  mto 
a    nation. 


70  TKE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 


CHAPTER  VI. 
THE   WAR   OF   THE   REVOLUTION. 

1.    THE  RESTORATION  OF  THE  STUARTS. 

The  English  were  tired  of  the  rule  of  the  Army,  and  on 
May  25th,  1660,  Charles  II.  returned  to  England  and  was 
accepted  without  any  opposition  as  King.  This  restora- 
tion of  the  Stuarts  naturally  raised  the  hopes  of  those  in 
Ireland  who  had  taken  up  arms  for  Charles  I.  They 
expected  that  the  Cromwellian  Settlement  would  be 
disallowed,  and  that  their  estates  would  be  given  back 
to  them.  The  English  people,  however,  were  not  prepared 
to  consent  to  this ;  the  soldiers  and  adventurers  had  been 
put  in  possession  by  an  Act  of  Parliament,  and  the  Pro- 
testants in  both  the  English  and  Irish  Parliaments  did 
not  wish  to  increase  the  power  of  the  Irish  CathoUcs,  and 
so  run  the  risk  of  another  rebellion. 

The  King  was  in  a  difficult  position  between  the  various 
parties,  and  tried  to  conciliate  each  of  them.  In  May, 
1662,  by  the  Act  of  Settlement,  the  possessions  of  the 
Cromwellian  settlers  were  confirmed,  but  all  dispossessed 
CathoUcs  who  could  prove  themselves  "  innocent "  of 
any  share  in  the  war  or  the  rebeUion  of  1641  were  to  be 
restored  to  their  lands.  In  February,  1663,  a  Court  of 
Claims  was  set  up  in  DubUn  to  try  the  various  cases  ;  but 
so  many  began  to  prove  their  innocence  that  the  settlers 
grew  alarmed,  and  there  was  so  much  agitation  and  strife 
that  the  proceedings  were  stopped.  In  1665,  however, 
an  Act  of  Explanation  was  passed,  and  by  this  the  Crom- 


THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  71 

wellian  settlers  agreed  to  give  back  one-third  of  the  con- 
fiscated lands  to  those  Irish  who  were  supposed  to  be  loyal. 
Thus,  while  before  the  RebelHon  the  Irish  Catholics  had 
two-thirds  of  the  profitable  land  of  Ireland,  they  now 
only  held  one- third,  the  rest  being  in  the  hands  of  the 
English  Protestants. 

On  the  whole,  the  reign  of  Charles  II.  was  beneficial  to 
Ireland.  Ormond,  who  was  Viceroy  for  the  greater  part 
of  the  time,  maintained  law  and  order.  He  formed  a 
militia  of  Protestants,  who  acted  as  a  local  police  ;  he  en- 
couraged the  woollen  and  linen  industries,  and  so  managed 
the  revenues  that  there  was  a  surplus  for  the  King.  The 
Scottish  and  English  settlers  were  good  farmers,  and  so 
improved  agriculture  and  trade.  At  this  time  both  Dublin 
and  Belfast  grew  in  size,  and  fine  private  houses  began  to 
be  built  all  over  the  country.  The  Anglican  Church, 
however,  which  had  suffered  under  the  Commonwealth, 
was  now  upheld  as  the  established  Church,  and,  as  in 
England,  the  Non- Conformists  and  Roman  Catholics 
were  allowed  no  freedom  of  worship.  The  idea  that  there 
should  only  be  one  Church  in  every  state  was  still  held 
all  over  Europe,  and  everywhere  those  of  the  state  religion 
carried  on  a  persecution  against  those  who  differed  from 
them  in  beHef.  Cromwell's  soldiers  were  Independents, 
while  the  Scots,  of  the  various  plantations,  and  those  who 
had  come  over  with  Munroe  and  settled  in  Antrim  and 
Down,  belonged,  like  their  brethren  in  Scotland,  to  the 
Presb5rterian  Church. 

In  1667  Charles  II.  passed  a  new  Act  of  Uniformity 
through  the  Irish  Parliament.  By  this  Act  the  English 
services  were  to  be  used  in  all  churches,  all  persons  holding 
church  offices  were  to  be  ordained  by  a  bishop,  and  '  The 
Covenant '  was  condemned  as  an  unlawful  oath.  No 
Non- Anglican  could  accept  these  conditions.  The  Kirk 
sessions  of  the  Presbyterians  were  condemned  as  unlawful 


72  THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

assemblies  ;  their  ministers  were  summoned  to  appear 
before  the  bishops  and  turned  out  of  their  livings.  They 
were  also  forbidden  to  preach  or  exercise  their  ministry 
in  public.  The  result  was  that  many  of  them  with  their 
congregations  left  the  country,  some  going  to  Scotland, 
but  more  to  America,  where  all  could  worship  as  they 
pleased. 

At  first  the  Roman  Catholics  were  immolested,  but 
owing  to  the  great  burst  of  indignation  aroused  in  England 
by  the  concoctions  of  the  infamous  Titus  Oates,  who 
pretended  that  the  Catholics  had  conspired  to  assassinate 
the  King  and  place  a  Roman  Catholic  on  the  throne, 
Charles  was  forced  to  deal  severely  with  them. 

James  II.  succeeded  his  brother  in  1685.  His  great  aim, 
being  a  Roman  Catholic  himself,  was  to  restore  the  Roman 
Catholic  religion  in  England,  and  to  rule  as  absolutely 
as  Charles  I.  had  done.  He  was  a  close  ally  of  Louis  XIV., 
the  great  King  of  France,  and  hoped,  with  his  aid,  to  carry 
out  his  desires. 

James  looked  upon  Ireland  in  much  the  same  way  that 
Charles  I.  had  done.  He  wanted  the  support  of  the  Irish 
army  and  of  the  Irish  CathoHcs,  but  cared  little  for  the 
real  interests  of  the  country.  He  appointed  Colonel 
Richard  Talbot,  a  declared  Roman  CathoHc,  as  Com- 
mander-in-Chief of  the  Irish  forces,  and  in  January,  1687, 
he  created  him  Lord  Deputy,  with  the  title  of  Earl  of 
Tyrconnel. 

Tyrconnel,  like  Strafford  or  Ormond,  proceeded  to 
carry  out  the  King's  wishes  in  Ireland.  He  dismissed  the 
Protestant  militia  which  had  been  formed,  and  gradually 
disarmed  all  the  Protestants.  He  replaced  the  Protestant 
officers  in  the  army  by  Roman  Catholics.  He  appointed 
some  Catholic  judges  and  sheriffs,  and  insisted  on  the 
admission  of  Roman  Catholics  to  the  corporations  from 
which  they  had  been  excluded,  and  to  the  Privy  Council. 
In  fact,  by  the  end  of  1688  nearly  all  the  Civil  and  Military 


THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  73 

Power  in  Ireland  was  in  the  hands  of  the  Roman  Catholics. 

As  Tyrconnel  saw  the  King  becoming  more  and  more 
unpopular  with  his  English  subjects,  he  gave  the  Irish 
Catholics  still  more  power,  and  did  what  he  could  to 
increase  the  army.  He  soon  had  60,000  men  enrolled  as 
soldiers,  and  was  able  to  send  some  3,000  Irish  troops 
to  England  during  the  autumn  of  1688. 

The  English  settlers  had  become  very  much  alarmed  ; 
they  feared  that  the  Roman  Catholics  would  regain  all 
their  lands,  and  a  groundless  rumour  was  put  in  circulation 
that  there  was  to  be  a  general  massacre  of  Protestants. 
In  the  general  state  of  unrest,  some  lawless  persons  were 
guilty  of  crimes  such  as  the  burning  of  houses  and  killing 
or  stealing  of  sheep.  The  Irish  soldiers  were  no  better 
paid  than  any  others  of  that  time.  Though  a  general 
order  was  issued  to  the  troops  by  Tyrconnel,  requiring  them 
to  pay  for  whatever  they  obtained  from  the  inhabitants, 
to  preserve  the  peace,  to  abstain  from  brawling,  it  was 
difficult  to  enforce  discipline  and  to  prevent  individuals 
from  plundering  the  houses  of  Protestant  settlers.  The 
priests  as  a  body  exhorted  the  people  to  stand  by  the  King 
and  Tyrconnel.  Many  of  the  colonists  fled  to  England, 
some  being  glad  to  escape  even  in  open  boats  across  the 
channel,  and  others  retired  to  their  country  houses,  which 
they  fortified  with  great  care.  The  bulk  of  the  Protestants 
left  in  the  country,  however,  resolved  to  withdraw  to  the 
strong  settlements  of  the  North.  Some  took  refuge  in 
Enniskillen,  while  a  great  many  went  to  Londonderry, 
which  was  now  one  of  the  most  important  towns  in  Ulster. 

2.    THE   ENGLISH    REVOLUTION. 
THE    RIVAL   PARTIES. 

The  English  grew  gradually  more  and  more  disgusted 
with  James.  They  had  become  firm  Protestants,  and 
disliked  his  illegal  Declaration  of  Indulgences  to  those 


J  A  THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

of  his  own  religion.  They  wished  to  keep  the  rights 
which  they  had  won  by  the  civil  war,  and  so  resented  his 
tyrannical  government.  They  also  wished  to  be  inde- 
pendent of  the  French,  and  to  withstand  the  ambition  of 
Louis  XIV.  These  matters,  upon  which  the  King  and  the 
English  Nation  were  in  conflict,  led  to  the  great  revolu- 
tion of  1689.  James  was  forced  to  leave  his  throne  and 
flee  to  France,  and  the  EngUsh  offered  the  Crown  to  William 
of  Orange,  who  had  married  Mary,  the  daughter  of  James, 
and  who  thus  had  some  claim  to  the  throne.  From  this 
time  forward  the  English  kings  could  not  pretend,  as  the 
Stuarts  had  done,  to  hold  power  by  any  *  divine  right,* 
but  owed  their  thrones  to  the  consent  of  Parliament. 
Hence,  they  could  no  longer  act  as  they  pleased,  and 
by  the  Revolution  Settlement  (the  Bill  of  Rights),  English 
liberties  were  secured. 

The  war  of  the  English  Revolution  was  fought  out  in 
Ireland,  where  James  made  a  last  stand  with  the  army  that 
had  been  collected  for  him  by  Tyrconnel.  As  has  already 
been  said,  James  cared  nothing  for  Ireland,  but  wished  to 
use  the  Irish  forces  in  order  to  regain  his  power  in  England. 
He  was  in  alHance  with  Louis  XIV.,  who  wished  to  use  the 
religious  difficulties  in  England  as  a  means  of  conquering 
Europe  for  France.  His  chief  opponent  was  William  of 
Orange,  the  leader  of  the  Dutch,  who  headed  a  great 
Protestant  Alliance  against  him  on  the  Continent.  Louis 
saw  that  if  he  supported  James  in  Ireland,  William,  now 
that  he  was  also  King  of  England,  would  have  to  go  there 
to  fight,  and  so  would  be  unable  to  oppose  the  French 
armies  in  the  Netherlands.  He  therefore  provided  James 
with  arms>  money,  and  ammunition,  in  order  that  he  might 
be  able  to  carry  on  the  war.  King  William,  the  leader 
of  the    allies,  could   not   leave  England   with    Ireland  in 


THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  75 

rebellion  by  her  side,  so,  as  Louis  had  hoped,  he  was 
forced  to  devote  his  attention  to  the  Irish  war.  The 
Irish  Catholics,  though  they  declared  for  James,  and  were 
glad  of  French  aid,  had  no  other  object  than  to  regain  the 
lands  which  they  had  lost.  The  Colonists,  who,  however, 
had  mostly  fled  to  England,  were  naturally  for  William, 
as  his  success  meant  the  safety  of  Protestantism  and  of 
the  English  interest  in  Ireland. 

3.    THE  IRISH  PARLIAMENT  OF  1689. 

James  landed  at  Kinsale  on  the  12th  March,  1689,  with 
a  small  army  composed  mainly  of  his  own  subjects,  and 
with  the  arms,  money,  and  ammunition  which  Louis  XIV. 
had  supplied.  He  was  accompanied  by  a  number  of 
French  officers  sent  over  to  discipline  the  Irish  forces, 
amongst  whom  was  the  CouDt  D'Avaux,  who  acted  as  the 
representative  of  the  French  King.  All  Ireland,  except 
Ulster,  was  now  in  the  hands  of  the  natives.  Tyrconnel  there- 
fore met  him  at  Cork  and  escorted  him  in  triumph  to  Dublin. 
He  was  received  in  the  capital  with  great  rejoicing.  The 
Lord  Mayor  and  other  officers  formed  a  procession  with 
twenty  coaches,  soldiers  were  drawn  up  in  the  streets,  bells 
were  rung,  cannons  fired,  and  bands  played,  while  a 
thanksgiving  service  was  held  in  the  Cathedral. 

James  first  summoned  a  ParUament  to  meet  on  the 
yth  May,  and  then  marched  north.  Tyrconnel  had 
already  tried  to  reduce  the  Protestants  of  Ulster  before 
aid  could  reach  them  from  England,  and  had  appointed 
Richard  Hamilton  at  the  head  of  a  large  force  for  the 
purpose.  When  the  news  reached  Londonderry,  however, 
that  a  Jacobite  army  was  going  to  occupy  the  town,  and  that 
the  peasantry  round  were  arming  for  a  rising,  though  the 
authorities  hesitated  as  to  the  proper  course  of  action, 
the  apprentices  seized  the  keys  and  closed  the  gates  in 
face  of  TyrconneFs  officers.     On  April  i8th  James  himself 


^5  THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

appeared  before  the  walls,  and  though  Robert  Lundy, 
the  Protestant  Governor,  thinking  resistance  hopeless, 
was  ready  to  submit,  the  inhabitants  rose  up,  and,  taking 
possession  of  the  walls,  raised  a  loud  cry  of '  No  Surrender,' 
which  they  accompanied  by  the  firing  of  a  gun.  James 
had  not  expected  any  such  resistance  ;  he  therefore  returned 
to  DubUn,  leaving  the  French  general,  Maumont,in  charge 
of  the  siege. 

The  Irish  Parliament  met  on  the  7th  May,  and,  as  we 
might  expect,  was  mainly  composed  of  Roman  Catholics. 
The  Protestants  were  either  in  arms  against  James,  had 
fled  to  England,  or  were  afraid  to  take  part.  In  the  House 
of  Lords  only  four  Protestant  bishops  made  their  appear- 
ance, and  out  of  the  hundred  lay  peers  only  fourteen 
obeyed  the  King's  summons,  of  whom  ten  were  Roman 
Catholics.  Seventeen  new  Roman  Catholic  lords  were 
then  admitted.  In  the  Lower  House  only  six  of  the 
members  were  Protestants,  the  other  two-hundred  and 
thirty-two  members  being  all  descendants  of  those  old 
Anglo-Irish  or  Celts  who  had  lost  their  lands  through 
the  various  settlements. 

In  judging  the  actions  of  this  Parliament  we  must 
remember  that  it  was  summoned  in  a  time  of  danger,  when 
feeling,  and  especially  religious  feeling,  ran  very  high, 
and,  like  the  members  of  the  first  National  Assembly  in  the 
French  Revolution  (who  acted  in  very  much  the  same  way), 
the  Irish  Catholics  had  had  no  experience  in  politics,  their 
religion  having  excluded  them  since  the  Restoration  from 
sitting  in  the  House  of  Commons  or  even  serving  as 
magistrates.  It  was  natural  that  they  should  think  only 
of  their  own  grievances  and  desire  to  make  a  revolution 
which  would  restore  to  them  their  lands. 

When  they  had  confirmed  James's  title  and  declared 
William  a  usurper,  they  proceeded  to  pass  a  number  of 
Acts,  some  of  which  were  good  and  some  bad.     They 


THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  77 

declared  the  independence  of  the  Irish  Parliament,  and 
then  repealed  the  Acts  of  Settlement.  All  those  whose 
ancestors  had  held  lands  before  the  rebellion  of  1641  were 
to  be  restored.  Innocent  purchasers  of  estates  were  to 
be  compensated,  but  the  descendants  of  the  original  settlers 
were  not  to  be  considered.  An  Act  of  Attainder  was  then 
passed,  by  which  over  two  thousand  Protestants  were 
declared  guilty  of  high  treason  if  they  did  not  return  to 
Ireland  upon  a  given  day.  As  in  the  French  Revolution, 
lists  of  those  Protestants  who  were  in  arms  or  who  had 
fled  were  drawn  up.  They  were  declared  attainted  unless 
they  returned  before  a  fixed  date.  Another  Act,  which 
was  more  to  the  credit  of  the  Parliament,  declared  for  the 
principle  of  Religious  Toleration.  Both  Protestants  and 
Catholics  were  to  support  their  own  clergy,  and  no  minister 
was  to  be  deprived  either  of  his  living  or  stipend.  Other 
measures  were  passed  for  the  improvement  of  Irish  trade, 
and  a  monthly  supply  was  voted  for  the  army.  James 
had,  despite  this  grant,  to  issue  a  Brass  Coinage  in 
accordance  with  a  very  harmful  practice  of  governments 
in  those  days.  The  real  and  the  face  or  pretended  value 
of  his  coins  was  something  very  different,  so  that  many  of 
the  DubHn  shopkeepers  were  ruined,  and  much  damage 
was  done  to  trade. 

The  session  closed  on  the  20th  July.  James  did  not 
approve  of  the  anti-Protestant  measures  which  had  been 
passed,  as  he  saw  that  they  would  damage  his  cause  in 
England ;  but  he  was  helpless,  as  he  depended  upon 
Irish  Catholic  support-  The  Parliament  in  London  was 
indignant  at  the  *  unlawful  and  rebellious '  behaviour 
of  the  Dublin  Assembly,  and  declared  all  its  acts  to  be 
null  and  void.  None  of  the  measures  which  had  been 
passed,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  ever  were  confirmed.  Had 
they  been,  Irish  history  would  have  taken  a  very  different 
course. 


jg  THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

4.    THE     SIEGE     OF     LONDONDERRY. 

After  the  departure  of  James,  his  army  remained  before 
Londonderry.  The  town  is  on  a  hill  overlooking  the 
river  Foyle.  It  was  then  surrounded,  as  it  still  is,  by  a 
thick  wall  about  a  mile  in  circuit,  on  which  v/ere  placed 
the  great  guns  which  had  been  presented  to  the  colony 
by  the  trading  companies  of  London.  The  wall  in  many 
places,  however,  was  in  ruins  ;  there  was  no  ditch ;  the  draw- 
bridges were  out  of  order;  there  were  few  provisions, 
and  a  great  number  of  colonists  had  come  in  from  the 
surrounding  country. 

In  the  opinion  of  the  French  officers  the  town  could 
not  hold  out  for  long.  The  inhabitants  felt,  however, 
that  to  give  up  Londonderry  was  to  give  up  Ireland,  for 
they  saw  that  on  their  resistance  depended  the  safety  of 
all  the  colonists  and  of  the  Protestant  faith.  They  there- 
fore determined  to  hold  their  own. 

Lundy,  after  his  attempt  to  treat  with  James,  was  so 
unpopular  that  he  had  to  go  into  hiding,  and  finally  let 
himself  down  from  the  wails  disguised  as  a  porter,  and 
so  made  his  escape.  After  his  departure  two  other 
governors  were  appointed  by  the  citizens— Major  Henry 
Baker,  who  took  the  chief  military  command,  and  the 
Reverend  George  Walker,  who  stirred  up  the  people 
by  his  eloquence,  and  preserved  peace  in  the  town. 

There  were  only  about  7,000  fighting  men  altogether 
for  the  defence.  These  were  now  divided  into  eight 
regiments,  each  under  a  colonel.  Cannon  was  placed 
upon  the  tower  of  the  Cathedral,  ammunition  was  stored 
in  the  vaults,  while  all  worked  hard  to  repair  the  defences. 

The  besiegers  soon  commenced  to  open  fire,  and  great 
damage  was  done  within  the  town.  The  citizens  began 
to  make  a  number  of  sallies,  in  the  first  of  which  Maumont, 
the  French  general,  was  killed,  with  about  200  men.     In 


THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  79 

the  succeeding  sallies  the  advantage,  on  the  whole,  lay  on 
the  side  of  the  garrison.  They  took  two  French  banners, 
which  they  hung  up  in  the  Cathedral,  and  several  officers 
of  note  were  carried  as  prisoners  within  the  walls. 

On  the  4th  June  the  Irish  and  French  forces  made  a 
determined  assault  on  an  important  fort  at  a  place  called 
Windmill  Hill,  near  the  South  gate.  The  colonists  drew 
up  on  the  walls  in  three  ranks  to  receive  them.  As  the 
front  rank  discharged  their  muskets,  the  second  rank  took 
their  place,  and  so  on,  the  women  handing  up  water  and 
ammunition,  so  that  there  was  a  continuous  fire.  Finally 
the  besiegers,  after  what  was  the  hardest  fight  of  the  siege, 
were  forced  to  retreat,  400  of  them  being  slain. 

No  more  direct  assaults  were  now  made,  and  a  regular 
blockade  was  begun.  Every  entrance  to  the  city  was 
guarded,  as  also  the  forts  along  the  Foyle,  in  order  that  no 
provisions  might  reach  the  town.  About  a  mile  and  a 
half  below  the  city  a  great  boom  was  thrown  across  the 
river.  Boats  filled  with  stones  were  sunk  in  the  water, 
stakes  were  driven  in,  and  trunks  of  firs  bound  together 
and  fastened  by  cables  to  the  shores.  The  besieged  were 
now  in  a  sad  plight.  The  provisions  began  to  get  very 
low,  horseflesh  was  sold  at  los.  a  pound,  while  even  a  dog's 
head  fetched  as  much  as  15s.  The  ammunition  was  also 
failing,  and  brick-bats  coated  with  lead  had  to  be  used  in 
the  guns.  The  hot  weather  was  very  unhealthy,  and 
many  died  of  disease. 

On  the  15th  June,  to  their  great  joy,  the  sentinels  on  the 
tower  of  the  Cathedral  beheld  thirty  English  ships  in  the 
Bay.  The  commander,  Major-General  Kirke,  had  been 
sent  from  England  to  reUeve  the  town,  but,  afraid  to  enter 
the  river  on  account  of  the  enemy's  guns,  he  remained 
where  he  was,  at  about  nine  miles  distant. 

By  the  end  of  June,  James  sent  the  Frenchman,  Marshal 
Rosen,  to  take  command.     As  a  last  resort  this  general 


8o  THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

caused  a  large  number  of  Protestants  from  the  surrounding 
country  to  be  driven  between  his  camp  and  the  walls, 
but  his  cruel  scheme  did  not  drive  the  townsmen  to 
surrender,  for  the  citizens  erected  a  gallows  in  sight  of  the 
besiegers  on  which  they  threatened  to  hang  all  the  prisoners 
if  their  friends  were  not  allowed  to  depart. 

English  public  opinion  now  called  loudly  for  the  relief 
of  Londonderry,  and  Kirke,  who  had  done  nothing  for  the 
last  six  weeks,  was  ordered  to  move.  On  the  28th  July 
three  provision  ships  made  their  way  up  the  river  under  a 
tremendous  fire  from  the  forts  on  the  banks  ;  the  boom 
was  broken,  and  the  town  was  relieved.  On  the  31st 
July  the  Irish  army  marched  away,  and  on  the  following 
day  came  the  news  that  the  men  of  Enniskillen  had  defeated 
a  large  force  of  Irish  which  had  been  sent  against  them 
at  Newtown  Butler.  Ulster  was  now  secured  for  King 
William. 

5.  THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  BOYNE. 

Early  in  August,  1689,  Schomberg,*  who  had  been 
appointed  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  forces  in  Ireland, 
landed  in  Down  with  10,000  men.  He  took  Belfast  and 
Carrickfergus,  and  then  marched  south  to  Dundalk. 
Schomberg  was  the  most  distinguished  general  in  William's 
service,  but  his  army  was  small,  and  mainly  composed  of 
untrained  soldiers  ;  it  was  also  found  that  the  English 
contractors  had  supplied  him  with  bad  stores  and  pro- 
visions. The  tents  were  rotten,  the  horses  poor,  and  many 
of  the  muskets  actually  broke  in  the  soldiers'  hands.  In 
the  circumstances  he  built  a  fortified  camp,  and  went  into 
winter  quarters  near  Dundalk. 

*  Schomberg  was  a  German  of  high  rank,  and  an  experienced  soldier  ; 
he  had  served  as  a  Marshal  in  the  French  army,  but  as  a  Protestant 
he  had  fallen  into  disfavour  with  Louis  XIV. 


THE  WAR   OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  8 1 

James  marched  north,  but  also  retired  into  winter 
quarters  when  he  found  that  he  could  not  draw  Schomberg 
to  an  engagement. 

At  this  time  the  French  were  building  up  an  excellent 
navy,  and  a  number  of  their  ships  defeated  an  English 
squadron  in  Bantry  Bay.  On  the  14th  March,  1690, 
7,000  French  soldiers,  together  with  a  large  supply  of 
stores  and  ammunition,  landed  at  Cork  under  the  command 
of  the  Duke  de  Lauzun. 

William  saw  that  the  situation  was  now  serious,  and  that 
he  must  come  over  to  Ireland  himself.  He  landed  at 
Carrickfergus  on  the  14th  June  with  an  army  composed 
not  only  of  English,  but  of  foreign  soldiers  belonging  to 
all  nations,  Danes,  Dutch,  Germans,  and  French  Pro- 
testants. He  had  with  him  forty  pieces  of  heavy  artillery 
and  four  mortars.  When  he  had  joined  Schomberg  he 
set  out  for  Belfast,  and,  collecting  all  the  troops  he  could 
from  Londonderry  and  Enniskillen,  he  united  his  forces 
at  Armagh. 

Both  Lauzun  and  Avaux  advised  James  to  abandon 
Dublin  and  to  retreat  behind  the  line  of  the  Shannon. 
The  Frenchmen  saw  that  WiUiam's  forces  were  superior  ; 
they  knew  that  many  of  James'  followers  were  scattered 
about  in  garrisons,  and  they  thought  very  little  of  the 
abilities  of  the  Irish  soldiers.  Thousands  had  flocked 
into  the  Jacobite  ranks,  and,  though  they  were  brave 
enough  and  would  have  made  good  soldiers  if  trained, 
there  was  not  sufficient  time  to  change  the  raw  levies  into 
a  disciplined  army.  Many  of  them  had  never  fired  a  shot, 
and  knew  nothing  about  arms.  It  was  said  that  one  man 
in  every  three  had  no  musket,  while  another  man  in  every 
three  had  a  musket  that  would  not  go  off.  The  officers 
had  the  greatest  difficulty  in  controlling  some  of  their 
forces,  in  inducing  them  to  obey  promptly  the  word  of 
command,  and  in  preventing  them  from  straggHng  in  search 
of  plunder.    There  was  also  a  dearth  of  money  and  war 


82 


THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 


materials.  James,  for  instance,  had  only  the  twelve  field 
guns  that  the  French  had  brought,  and  no  heavy  artillery. 
He  decided,  however,  to  risk  a  battle,  and  determined,  in 
the  words  of  one  of  his  followers,  *  to  put  his  title  to  three 
kingdoms  upon  the  event  of  one  day.' 

On  the  29th  June  the  Jacobites  retreated  across  the 
Boyne  and  took  up  a  position  on  the  right  or  southern 
bank  of  the  river.  On  the  30th  William's  troops  appeared 
on  the  left  bank.  The  King  spent  the  day  examining 
the  ground.     The  odds  against  James  were  great,  but  his 


armv  or  William 


THE   BATTLE  OF  THE  BOYNE 

A  J  IST   JULY    1690 

DuleeV 


position  was  good.  He  was  protected  by  the  Boyne  and 
by  the  hilly  ground  behind  his  camp  which  prevented 
the  full  number  of  his  forces  from  being  seen.  He  had 
erected  breastworks  also  along  the  edge  of  the  water,  and 
had  fortified  the  village  of  Oldbridge.  His  left  towards 
Slane,  however,  was  unprotected,  and  William  saw  that  if 
this  was  once  turned,  the  pass  of  Duleek  might  be  occupied 
and  the  road  to  DubUn  cut  off. 

On  the  morning  of  the  30th,  when  William  was  break- 
fasting with  his  staff  at  a  spot  nearly  opposite  to  Oldbridge, 
only  two  hundred  feet  from  the  enemy,  the  Irish  drew 


THE  WAR  OF  THE   REVOLUTION.  83 

Up  a  gun  and  fired  a  shot  which  grazed  the  King's  shoulder. 
The  news  of  WilHam's  wound  spread  in  the  Irish  camp, 
and  it  was  rumoured  that  he  was  dead.  The  report  was 
carried  to  Dublin  and  then  to  Paris,  where  the  streets 
were  illuminated  in  honour  of  the  event,  the  bells  rung, 
and  a  straw  image  of  WiUiam  trailed  through  the  mud. 
These  proceedings  were  rather  out  of  place,  for  William 
was  but  slightly  injured,  and  at  the  time  the  French  were 
rejoicing  over  the  death  of  the  leader  of  the  Protestant 
Alliance,  the  Battle  of  the  Boyne  was  over,  and  the  Irish 
in  full  flight. 

On  the  morning  of  the  ist  July,  William  ordered  his 
right  wing  under  young  Meinhart  Schomberg,  one  of 
the  Duke's  sons,  to  go  up  the  river  towards  Slane  and  turn 
the  left  flank  of  the  Irish  army.  James  had  left  the  bridge 
unguarded,  but  now,  realising  his  mistake,  he  sent  a  large 
part  of  his  army,  including  the  picked  French  troops  of 
Louis  under  Lauzun,  with  all  his  artillery,  to  oppose  a 
crossing  at  Rosnaree  and  Slane.  It  was  too  late,  how- 
ever, for  William's  soldiers  had  already  crossed. 

Meanwhile  the  defence  of  Oldbridge  had  been  left  to 
the  Irish  infantry  under  Tyrconnel  and  Richard  Hamilton. 
About  ten  o'clock  Schomberg  crossed  the  river  opposite 
Oldbridge.  The  Irish  infantry  regiments,  though  com- 
pletely outnumbered  and  unsupported  by  heavy  guns, 
offered  a  strong  resistance,  but  were  at  last  forced  to  give 
way. 

William  himself  prepared  to  cross  the  Boyne  nearer 
Drogheda  with  the  men  of  Enniskillen.  *  Gentlemen,' 
he  said,  *  you  shall  be  my  guards  to-day.  I  have  heard 
much  of  you.  Let  me  see  something  of  you.'  Though 
the  Irish  infantry  had  shown  so  much  cowardice,  the 
cavalry  made  a  fine  stand,  and  drove  back  William's  forces 
again  and  again.  They  were  beaten  at  last,  and  James's 
army  would  have  been  destroyed  had  it  not  been  for  the 


§4  THE  WAR   OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

French,  who  saved  a  complete  rout  by  taking  possession 
of  the  Pass  of  Duleek  and  so  securing  the  road  which  led 
to  Dublin  * 

James  had  watched  the  battle  from  an  old  church  on 
Dunore  Hill,  and  remained  there  till  he  saw  that  all  was 
lost.  His  own  foolishness  had  brought  this  about ;  he 
had  made  the  serious  mistake  of  leaving  his  left  exposed, 
and  in  order  to  provide  for  his  own  safety  he  had  sent  off 
his  baggage  and  six  of  his  guns  to  Dublin  before  the  battle 
began.  At  five  p.m.  he  left  for  Dublin,  where  he  hurriedly 
called  the  Corporation  together  and  laid  the  blame  of  the 
defeat  upon  the  cowardice  of  the  Irish  troops.  *  I  will 
never/  he  said,  '  command  an  Irish  army  again.  I  must 
shift  for  myself  ;  and  so  must  you.'  He  started  the  same 
night  for  Waterford  and  was  soon  in  France. 

The  Battle  of  the  Boyne  as  an  actual  battle  was  of  little 
interest.  It  was  fought  by  two  small  armies  ;  few  on  either 
side  had  fallen ;  there  were  no  complicated  tactics  ;  the 
conflict  had  not  been  a  very  fierce  one,  yet  troops  from 
many  European  nations  had  met  upon  the  field.  Hence 
it  was  not  merely  a  victory  either  of  English  over  Irish 
or  a  contest  between  Irish  parties  themselves,  but  a  struggle 
conducted  by  tw^o  Princes  who  had  wider  ends  in  view. 

Nevertheless  the  battle  was  of  the  very  greatest  import- 
ance. It  set  William  free  to  check  Louis  XIV.  on  the 
Continent,  and  it  put  an  end  to  a  very  dangerous  crisis 
in  English  history.  The  French  fleet  by  this  time  had 
become  exceedingly  powerful,  and  on  the  30th  June, 
Tourville,  the  French  Admiral,  had  won  such  a  victory 
over  the  English  at  Beachy  Head  that  he  easily  became 
master  of  the  Channel.  A  French  invasion  of  England 
was  hourly  expected,  and  a  Jacobite  rising  was  feared  as 
a  consequence.     About  the  same  time  Louis  won  a  great 

*  Also  William  did  not  wish  to  take  his  wife's  father  prisoner,  and 
so  allowed  James  to  escape. 


THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  «5 

land  battle  at  Fleurus  in  the  Netherlands.  William's 
victory  at  the  Boyne,  therefore,  came  just  in  time  ;  the 
French  fleet  returned  to  Brest,  and  Louis,  disgusted  with 
James's  failure  in  Ireland,  turned  all  his  energies  to  the 
war  in  Flanders. 

William  entered  Dublin  on  the  6th  July,  and  was  received 
with  great  joy  by  the  Protestant  inhabitants. 

6.  THE  END  OF  THE  WAR  AND  THE  TREATY 
OF  LIMERICK. 

Though  James  had  been  defeated,  it  was  determined 
on  both  sides  to  continue  the  war.  The  colonists  were 
eager  for  revenge,  and  looked  forward  to  large  grants  of 
lands  from  the  rebels'  estates.  The  Irish,  on  the  other 
hand,  had  not  yet  secured  any  terms  for  themselves,  and 
as  they  saw  that  their  enemies  were  bent  on  their  ruin, 
they  thought  that  they  might  as  well  sell  their  lives  as  dearly 
as  possible.  They  still  held  Connaught  and  Munster 
and  the  four  harbours  of  Cork,  Kinsale,  Limerick,  and 
Gal  way,  which  secured  to  them  a  free  communication 
with  France.  The  extreme  national  party,  led  by  Patrick 
Sarsfleld,  who  was  descended  from  an  old  Anglo-Irish 
family,  and  had  been  educated  in  France,  determined 
to  fall  back  upon  Limerick,  and,  if  necessary,  stand  a  siege. 
Considering  the  state  of  the  ramparts,  however,  which 
Lauzun  declared  could  be  battered  down  with  roasted 
apples,  Tyrconnel  and  the  French  officers  thought  it 
wiser  to  retreat  and  withdraw  to  Galway  with  their  forces. 

WiUiam  by  this  time  had  marched  west,  and  in  the  second 
week  of  August  took  up  a  position  before  Limerick,  where 
the  garrison,  composed  of  about  30,000  Irish,  was  com- 
manded by  the  Frenchman,  Boisseleau,  Sarsfield  having 
charge  of  the  cavalry. 


86  THE  WAR  GF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

William  had  only  brought  some  light  guns  with  him, 
but  a  siege  train  of  heavy  cannon,  provisions,  and  ammu- 
nition, guarded  by  a  convoy  of  horse,  was  on  its  way  from 
Dublin  to  his  camp.  Sarsfield  was  informed  of  this  by 
a  deserter,  and  so,  on  the  night  of  the  loth  August,  1690, 
he  set  out  with  500  horse.  He  crossed  the  Shannon 
about  15  miles  above  Limerick,  and  took  cover  the  follow- 
ing day  in  the  Silvermine  Mountains  of  Tipperary.  That 
night  he  and  his  troop  fell  upon  the  siege  train  at  a  place 
called  Ballyneety,  which  lay  only  some  twelve  miles  from 
William's  outposts,  He  killed  the  escort,  blew  up  the  guns 
and  stores,  and  made  a  hasty  return. 

The  citizens  of  Limerick,  encouraged  by  Sarsfield's 
brilliant  achievement,  made  as  desperate  a  defence  as 
those  of  Londonderry  had  done.  The  walls  were  repaired, 
and  the  determined  assault  made  on  the  27th  August  was 
a  failure ;  the  Shannon,  which  surrounded  the  town, 
began  to  rise,  the  autumn  rains  commenced,  which  always 
brought  disease  among  the  English  troops,  and  William  was 
badly  needed  in  England.  He  determined,  therefore,  to 
return,  and  raising  the  siege  on  August  31st,  left  Ginkel, 
the  Dutchman,  in  command. 

Tyrconnel  and  Lauzun  now  left  for  France  to  defend 
themselves  against  the  complaints  made  against  them  by 
the  Irish.  The  Duke  of  Berwick,  a  natural  son  of  James, 
was  appointed  Commander-in-Chief. 

On  the  22nd  September  an  English  expedition  under 
John  Churchill,  who  was  to  become  the  famous  Duke  of 
Marlborough,  landed  at  Cork,  and  both  that  town  and 
Kinsale  were  captured,  so  closing  two  good  harbours  to 
the  French.  This  was  the  most  important  action  of  the 
war  ;  it  brought  the  campaign  of  1690  to  an  end. 

During  the  winter  the  Irish  Tories,  or  *  Rapparees,* 
as  they  were  now  called  (from  the  Irish  name  of  the  short 
pike  with  which  they  were  armed),   attacked  and  burnt 


THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  87 

the  English  territories,  but  no  serious  fighting  took  place. 
In  January,  1691,  Tyrconnel  returned  with  arms  and 
stores,  and  the  French  general,  St.  Ruth,  arrived  with 
reinforcements  in  May.  Ginkel  now  took  the  field  with 
20,000  well-equipped  troops,  and  a  splendid  train  of 
artillery. 

The  fortress  of  Athlone  had  been  built  by  King  John 
upon  the  Shannon  to  overawe  the  clans  of  Connaught. 
The  town,  from  the '  military  point  of  view,  was  one  of 
the  most  important  in  Ireland.  It  was  divided,  like 
Limerick,  into  an  Irish  and  an  English  quarter.  The 
English  town  lay  on  the  Leinster  side  of  the  Shannon, 
while  the  Irish  town  and  the  Castle  were  on  the  Connaught 
bank. 

On  the  20th  June,  Ginkel  attacked  the  English  town, 
which  fell  after  some  hours  of  hard  fighting.  The  Irish 
town  was  then  cannonaded.  There  was  only  one  bridge 
over  the  river,  and  this  the  Irish  held  with  great  bravery, 
despite  all  efforts  to  dislodge  them.  On  the  30th  June, 
as  he  could  not  capture  the  bridge,  Ginkel  determined 
to  find  a  ford.  At  six  o'clock  in  the  evening  1,500  grena- 
diers crossed  the  Shannon,  and  clambering  up  the  bank, 
entered  the  Irish  town  over  the  remains  of  walls  battered 
by  a  ten-days*  fire.  St.  Ruth,  who  was  encamped  near  by, 
but  had  given  no  help  to  the  garrison,  as  he  thought  the 
fording  of  the  Shannon  out  of  the  question,  now  withdrew 
in  the  direction  of  Galway,  and  Ginkel  set  out  in  pursuit. 

St.  Ruth,  smarting  under  the  loss  of  Athlone,  deter- 
mined to  risk  a  battle,  and  drew  up  his  forces  upon  a  hill 
surrounded  by  a  bog,  which  lay  near  the  ruined  Castle 
of  Aughrim.  Ginkel  arrived  on  the  12th  July,  and  began 
to  strike  at  the  breastwork  of  fences  with  which  St.  Ruth 
had  covered  his  front.  Fighting  went  on  for  some  hours 
till  the  English  cavalry  began  to  lay  hurdles  on  the  bog ; 
firm  ground  was  thus  reached,  and  the  left  flank  of  th^ 


88  THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

Irish  army  was  turned.  In  this  action  St.  Ruth  was 
killed,  and,  as  Sarsfield  was  with  the  reserve,  and  ignorant 
of  the  plans  of  his  chief,  the  Irish  ranks  were  thrown  into 
great  confusion.  The  English  won  a  complete  victory, 
and  fought  with  great  ferocity,  giving  no  quarter.  Several 
thousand  Irish  were  massacred,  and  the  country  for  miles 
around  was  covered  with  corpses. 

The  wreck  of  the  Irish  army  now  drifted  to  Galway 
and  Limerick.  Galway  surrendered  on  the  21st  July, 
and  Limerick  became  the  last  refuge  of  the  natives. 
Ginkel  approached  the  town  and  began  to  batter  it  with 
his  guns,  while  a  number  of  English  warships  sailed  up 
the  Shannon. 

Both  sides  were  now  anxious  for  peace.  Tyrconnel 
was  dead,  and  the  Irish  were  thoroughly  disheartened. 
Sarsfield  saw  that  Limerick  could  not  hold  out  much 
longer,  and  thought  to  secure  better  terms  while  arms 
were  still  in  his  hands.  Ginkel,  for  William,  was  equally 
anxious  to  treat.  The  rainy  season  was  coming  on,  the 
French  might  send  reinforcements,  and  William  w^anted 
all  his  forces  for  service  against  Louis  XIV.  on  the  Con- 
tinent. 

The  "  Articles  of  Surrender,"  commonly  called  the 
Treaty  of  Limerick,  were  therefore  drawn  up  and  signed 
early  in  October,  1691,  by  the  leaders  on  both  sides.* 
For  the  surrender  of  Limerick  there  was  to  be  a  general 
pardon  for  all,  and  a  return  to  the  state  of  ajffairs  that  had 
existed  in  the  reign  of  Charles  II. 

The  Roman  Catholics  were  to  have  all  the  religious 
liberty  that  was  consistent  with  the  laws  ;  they  were  to  be 
required  to  take  no  other  oath  but  that  of  *  Allegiance,' 
and  those  that  had  been  in  arms  for  King  James  were  to 
retain  the  estates  that  they  had  held  before  the  war. 

*  Ginkel  signed  the  treaty,  which  was  ratified  by  WilHam  and  Mary 
(5th  April,  1692).  By  the  11th  Article  it  was  provided  that  their 
Majesties  will  '  use  their  utmost  endeavours  that  the  same  shall  be 
ratified   and   confirmed   by    Parliament.' 


THE  WAR  OF  THE  REVOLUTION.  89 

As  for  the  military  articles  of  the  Treaty,  all  officers 
and  soldiers  might  either  join  William's  army  or  enlist 
in  the  service  of  foreign  nations.  About  12,000  men, 
among  whom  was  Sarsfield,  the  idol  of  the  Irish,  left  for 
France,  where  they  reinforced  the  famous  *  Irish  Brigade,' 
which  took  part  in  most  of  the  great  French  battles  of  the 
closing  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries. 

Both  Ginkel  and  William  were  well  aware  of  the  dangers 
of  a  winter  campaign,  and  of  the  arrival  of  French  rein- 
forcements. In  their  anxiety  to  set  free  the  troops  engaged 
in  Ireland  for  service  on  the  Continent,  they  were  willing 
to  concede  terms  to  the  Roman  Catholics,  which,  they 
should  have  known,  would  prove  unacceptable  to  both  the 
Protestant  colonists  in  Ireland  and  the  great  body  of  the 
English  people. 

On  October  22nd  the  English  Parliament  passed  an  Act 
making  it  compulsory  for  all  members  of  the  Irish  Par- 
liament and  all  office  holders  to  take  the  old  Oath  of 
Supremacy,  thus  excluding  the  Roman  Catholics  from 
public  affairs,  while  the  Irish  Parliament  passed  many 
severe  measures  against  them.  Thus  the  provisional 
Treaty  of  Limerick  was  repudiated  by  the  Irish  Parliament 
in  spite  of  King  WiUiam's  wish,  and  when  fresh  confis- 
cations were  made  only  about  one-seventh  of  the  land 
of  Ireland  remained  to  the  Roman  Catholics. 

This  almost  complete  setting  aside  of  the  terms  of  the 
Treaty  of  Limerick  was  a  gross  breach  of  faith,  but  in 
judging  it,  it  is  well  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  seventeenth 
century  was  an  age  of  reHgious  persecution,  and  if  the 
Roman  Catholics  were  oppressed  in  England  and  Ireland, 
the  Protestants  were  persecuted  in  Spain,  Italy,  and 
Bohemia,  and  especially  in  France.  Political  morality 
was  also  very  low  ;  Louis  XIV.,  for  example,  the  greatest 
monarch  in  Europe,  broke  all  the  partition  treaties  con- 
cerning the  Spanish  succession.     Had  the  Roman  Catholics 


90  THE  WAR  OF   THE   REVOLUTION. 

had  the  upper  hand  in  Ireland  at  this  time,  they  would 
probably  have  acted  in  just  the  same  way  as  the  colonists, 
though  it  should  be  remembered  that  if  they  passed  an  Act 
of  Attainder  against  the  Protestants  who  refused  to  rally 
to  the  side  of  James  II.,  they  also  sanctioned  the  principle 
of  religious  toleration. 


THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  9 J 


CHAPTER   VII. 

IRELAND  UNDER  THE  OLD  COLONIAL  SYSTEM 

—THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT 

ASCENDANCY. 


I.    THE  PENAL  LAWS. 

The  population  of  Ireland  was  now  divided  into  two 
distinct  parts — the  great  mass  of  the  people,  the  Roman 
Catholics,  who  were  the  original  owners  of  the  soil  ;  and 
the  English  Protestant  colonists,  who,  during  the  last 
century  and  a  half,  had  gradually,  by  means  of  the  various 
confiscations,  acquired  the  bulk  of  Irish  land.  Considering 
the  vast  numbers  of  Roman  Catholics  in  Ireland,  their 
connection  with  France  and  the  Stuarts,  and  the  dangerous 
position  of  England  herself  under  a  new  government,  it 
was  thought  necessary  to  secure  the  permanent  superiority 
of  the  Protestants  by  depriving  the  Catholics  of  their 
civil  and  religious  rights.  This  policy  was  carried  out 
by  means  of  a  series  of  enactments  passed  through  the 
Irish  Parliament  during  the  early  years  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  The  main  features  of  the  Penal  Laws  were  as 
follows  : — 

1.  The  Roman  Catholics  were  prevented  from  taking 
any  part  in  the  life  of  the  State.  They  were  excluded 
from  Parliament ;  they  might  not  become  sheriffs  ;  they 
were  forbidden  to  practise  at  the  bar.  They  could  not 
sit  as  members  of  town  corporations,  nor  could  they  serve 
in  the  army  or  navy,  or  possess  arms  or  a  valuable  horse. 

2.  They  were  separated  as  much  as  possible  from  the 


92  THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

land.  No  Catholic  could  buy  land,  inherit  it,  or  receive 
it  as  a  gift  from  a  Protestant.  No  lease  might  be  held 
for  more  than  thirty- one  years,  or  on  such  terms  that  the 
profits  exceeded  one-third  of  the  rent.  On  a  man's  death 
his  estate  was  divided  amongst  his  sons,  and  if  the  eldest 
became  a  Protestant  the  whole  was  settled  upon  him. 
A  Protestant  woman  who  married  a  Catholic  was  deprived 
of  her  lands. 

3.  The  Roman  Catholic  Church  was  attacked  as  a 
body.  It  was  not  possible  to  forbid  the  Mass,  but  every 
priest  was  obliged  to  take  an  oath  of  abjuration,  and  all 
Roman  Catholic  bishops  and  regular  priests  were  ordered 
to  leave  the  country.  It  was  made  illegal  for  a  Roman 
Catholic  to  teach  in  a  school,  and  Roman  Catholic  children 
might  not  be  educated  abroad. 

As  the  eighteenth  century  advanced  people  grew  more 
tolerant,  and  these  cruel  laws,  though  enforced  stringently 
for  some  years,  were  gradually  repealed,  but  not  before 
much  harm  had  been  done.  The  best  and  most  enter- 
prising among  the  Irish  Roman  Catholics,  debarred  from 
government,  education,  and  the  means  of  making  wealth, 
left  the  country  in  large  numbers,  and  entered  the  service 
of  France  and  other  nations  as  soldiers,  diplomats,  and 
scholars.  Many  of  those  who  were  left  behind  were 
reduced  to  a  condition  of  poverty  and  ignorance.  The 
persecution  of  a  Church  or  of  a  religion  generally  leads  to 
an  increase  in  its  strength,  and  many  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
priests,  despite  the  laws,  remained  in  hiding,  and  ministered 
to  their  flocks  in  remote  places  ;  the  people  became 
devoted  to  their  religion  and  hated  the  race  which  had 
declared  war  upon  it.  The  poverty  and  ignorance  of 
the  Roman  Catholics  were  also  bad  for  the  country  as  a 
whole — it  was  kept  poor,  and  that  circulation  of  capital 
was  prevented  which  is  necessary  for  a  prosperous  con- 
dition of  trade. 


THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  93 

Non-Anglicans  were  also  foolishly  attacked  by  the 
introduction  of  the  English  Test  Act  in  1704,  by  which 
all  office  holders  were  obliged  to  receive  the  Sacrament 
according  to  the  rites  of  the  Church  of  England.  This 
led  to  the  emigration  of  many  of  the  Presbyterians  of  the 
north,  bringing  their  wealth  and  their  industry  with  them. 

The  Penal  Laws  at  least  had  the  desired  effect  of  keeping 
the  country  quiet.  In  the  Jacobite  risings  of  171 5  and 
1745,  when  a  Highland  army  actually  marched  into  England, 
and  an  Irish  rising  would  have  had  every  chance  of  success, 
the  Roman  Catholics  gave  no  sign  ;  and  the  government 
was  even  able  to  spare  several  of  the  Irish  regiments  to 
subdue  the  rebels  in  Scotland. 

2.    COMMERCIAL   RESTRICTIONS. 

The  notion  of  a  colony  which  was  held  at  this  time 
by  England,  France,  Spain  and  other  nations  was,  that 
it  should  be  ruled  for  the  advantage  of  the  mother  country. 
Jt  was  thought,  for  instance,  that  a  colony  should  be  a 
source  of  wealth,  or,  in  any  case,  that  its  trade  and  commerce 
should  neither  interfere  nor  compete  with  the  trade  and 
commerce  at  home.  We  know  now  that  the  financial 
or  commercial  ruin  of  one  country  is  bound  to  have  a  bad 
effect  upon  all  the  others,  just  as  an  improvement  in  a 
country's  prosperity  is  bound  to  have  a  good  influence. 
At  this  period,  however,  nations  stood  apart,  and  very 
little  was  known  about  the  modern  science  of  wealth.  It 
was  believed  that  what  was  one  country's  good  was  another 
country's  harm,  and  so  each  tried  to  build  up  a  large  trade 
and  keep  it  to  itself. 

The  English  looked  upon  Ireland  as  a  colony  or  depen- 
dency, and  treated  the  Protestant  Colonists  as  they  treated 
the  Scots  and  the  English  settlers  in  North  America. 

The  people  of  Scotland  had  an  independent  parliament, 
and   they   naturally   disliked   the   commercial  tyranny  of 


94  THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

England  ;  thus  when  the  union  between  Scotland  and 
England  was  brought  about  in  1707,  one  of  the  chief  con- 
ditions was  that  the  Scots  should  have  freedom  of  trade. 
The  English  settlers  in  North  America  also  resented 
being  placed  under  the  Old  Colonial  System,  and  this 
was  one  of  the  chief  causes  of  their  great  War  of  Indepen- 
dence. 

In    Ireland   the   ruling   race,   the   Protestant    colonists, 
were  too  dependent  upon  England  to  be  capable  of  resist- 
ance ;    the  government    supported  them  in  power  against 
the  great  mass  of  the  Roman  Catholic  population,  and  in 
return  they   had  to  submit  to  being  ruled  for    English 
benefit,   and   to  such   restrictions  and  regulations   as  the 
English  Parliament  chose  to  impose.     The  laws  against 
Irish  trade,  however,  were  not  only  due  to  the  care  for 
English  commerce.     It  was.  also  thought  that  if  Ireland 
was   too   prosperous   the   revenues   of  the   English    King 
might  be  unduly  increased  as  in  the  days  of  Strafford — 
thus  the  Crown  would  become  independent  of  Parliament, 
and   so  perhaps  the   tyranny   of  the   Stuarts    would    be 
restored.     It  was  thought,  too,  that  if  Ireland  was  kept 
poor  there  would  be  less  chance  of  the  country  becoming 
troublesome. 

The  cattle  trade,  as  in  the  old  tribal  days,  had  always 
been  (as  it  now  is)  the  chief  source  of  Irish  wealth,  and 
Ireland,  though  not  fitted  for  industry,  at  least  in  the 
south,  has  always  been  a  good  farming  or  pasture  country. 
During  Charles  II. 's  reign  the  Irish  were  forbidden  to 
export  cattle  into  England,  because  it  was  feared  that  the 
large  in-come  of  Irish  stock  would  compete  with  English 
to  such  an  extent  that  the  rents  of  grazing  land  in  England 
would  fall. 

Shortly  afterwards  the  ]5rish  were  also  excluded  from  all 
trade  with  the  colonies.  By  the  English  Navigation  Act, 
nothing  could  be  imported  into  the  English  colonies  except 


THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  95 

from  England,  in  ships  built  in  England,  and  manned  by 
Englishmen.  In  1696  it  was  also  decreed  that  no  goods 
were  to  be  imported  from  the  colonies  into  Ireland. 

Owing   to   the   prohibition   of  the   cattle   export   trade, 
the  Irish  farmers  turned  their  attention  to  the  growing  of 
wool.     Irish  wool  was  of  a  very  good  quality,  it  was  cheap, 
and  the  cost  of  living  in  Ireland  was  low,  so  that  many 
skilled  weavers  came  from  England  and  abroad,  and  set 
up  woollen  manufactures  in  the  various  Irish  towns.     A 
great  deal  of  Irish  wool  was  also  sent  to  the  Continent, 
and  there  worked  into  cloth.     The  English  grev/  alarmed 
at  the  rivalry  of  this  foreign  cloth,  which  had  already 
paralysed  the  industry  in  the  West  of  England,  and  they 
also  objected  to  the  large  immigration  of  their  own  weavers 
into     Ireland.      In     1698      the      English      manufacturers 
petitioned  against  the  rising   Irish  Industry.     The   Irish 
Parliament  was  therefore  summoned,  and  the  Irish  were 
forbidden  to  export  wool.     This,  of  course,  ruined  the 
Irish  wool  trade.     The  leading  manufacturers,  who  were 
mostly   Protestants,   left   Ireland,   and   carried   their   skill 
abroad.     It    also    led    to    a    flourishing   smuggling    trade 
with   France.     The    French   gave   large   prices   for    Irish 
fleeces,  and  so  great  stores  of  wool  were  hidden  along  the 
islands  and  cliff^s  of  the  wild  coasts  of  the  West,  and  thence 
shipped  on  to  French  vessels,  packed, in  barrels  as  butter 
or  fish.     As  the  profits  were  good,  all  classes,  including 
magistrates  and  gentry,  took  part,  and  this  made  it  very 
difficult  for  the  government  to  arrest  the  smuggling. 

Except  with  regard  to  dyed  and  chequered  linens, 
which  were  also  made  in  England,  the  Irish  Linen  Trade 
was  not  attacked,  and  this  probably  explains  the  fact 
that  it  is  one  of  the  few  flourishing  industries  in  Ireland 
of  to-day. 

The  laws  against  Irish  trade  caused  a  great  deal  of 
discontent  amongst  the  Protestants  and  Roman  Catholics 


96  THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

alike.  Jonathan  Swift,  the  celebrated  Dean  of  St. 
Patrick's  Cathedral,  Dublin,  wrote  a  pamphlet  in  1720 
urging  the  Irish,  in  view  of  the  terrible  poverty  in  the 
country,  to  use  nothing  but  Irish  goods,  and  mockingly 
advised  them  to  burn  everything  that  came  from  England. 
In  his  Drapier's  Letters  he  also  attacked  the  government 
for  allowing  a  certain  William  Wood,  a  London  iron- 
monger, to  buy  a  patent  to  coin  halfpence  for  Ireland 
for  his  own  gain.  The  feeling  about  *  Wood's  Halfpence' 
ran  so  high,  and  the  Irish  Parliament  protested  so  vigor- 
ously, that  the  patent  had  to  be  withdrawn.  This  was  the 
beginning  of  the  movement  of  public  opinion  in  Ireland 
against  the  old  colonial  system,  which  grew  stronger 
and  stronger  as  the  century  advanced. 

3.    THE  SUBORDINATION  OF  THE  IRISH 
PARLIAMENT. 

King  John,  in  order  to  gain  money  for  his  French  wars, 
had  called  a  Council  in  Dublin  in  1204,  to  which  he  sum- 
moned all  the  chief  personages  of  the  Kingdom.  He 
also  appointed  a  Deputy,  later  called  a  Viceroy,  or  Lord 
Lieutenant,  to  act  in  his  stead.  In  1295  the  Irish  Council 
received  the  name  *  Parliament,'  and  was  afterwards 
divided,  as  in  England,  into  the  two  Houses  of  Lords  and 
Commons.  The  Irish  Privy  Council  was  established  by 
Henry  III.,  and  gradually  played  a  part  which  was  some- 
thing like  that  of  the  modern  Cabinet,  for  the  Viceroys 
were  so  often  changed  that  they  had  to  rely  upon  it  for 
direction  and  aid  ;  and  it  also  came  to  have  a  great  influence 
over  the  Parliament. 

In  the  time  of  the  Stuarts  a  large  number  of  Boroughs 
had  been  created  to  elect  members  who  would  vote  in 
accordance  with  the  King's  wishes.  Of  the  300  members, 
216  were  elected  by  boroughs  and  manors,  and  of  these, 


THE  PERIOD   OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  97 

176  were  chosen  by  individual  patrons.  Thus,  the  elec- 
tions were  managed  by  a  small  number  of  persons. 

The  Irish  Parliament,  again,  was  not  a  representative 
body ;  not  only  was  there  this  great  evil  of  the  boroughs, 
but  the  entire  Roman  CathoUc  population  was  excluded 
from  voting  and  from  electing  members.  The  Parliament 
was  filled  with  nominees  by  the  English  Government — 
Englishmen  who  held  all  the  chief  offices  in  Ireland,  and 
members  from  the  boroughs,  the  owners  of  which  were 
bribed  with  pensions  and  offices  to  vote  for  the  Crown. 
Thus  the  whole  political  power  of  the  colony  was  concen- 
trated in  the  hands  of  a  few ;  they  were  checked  by  no 
popular  opinion,  such  as  binds  a  modern  democratic  body, 
but  were  responsible  only  to  the  Viceroy  and  to  the  English 
ministry. 

The  Irish  Parliament  was  not  only  an  interested  and 
unrepresentative  assembly,  but  it  was  not  free  in  itself. 
By  Poynings'  Law,  passed  in  1494  (see  page  25),  it  could 
not  be  summoned  till  its  Bills  were  approved  of  in  England. 
It  gradually  acquired  the  power  of  originating  the  heads 
of  its  own  Bills,  but  these  had  still  to  be  sent  to  the  English 
Privy  Council,  which  could  reject  or  alter  them  as  it 
pleased. 

In  1 7 19,  after  a  legal  dispute  between  the  English  and 
Irish  House  of  Lords,  it  was  decreed  by  an  Act,  generally 
referred  to  as  *  The  Sixth  of  George  I.'  (6  Geo.  I.),  that 
the  English  Parliament  had  the  power  to  legislate  for 
Ireland.  At  the  same  time  the  Irish  House  of  Lords  was 
deprived  of  its  right  to  hear  appeals. 

Though  a  large  part  of  the  Irish  Parliament  was  devoted 
to  English  interests,  a  party  gradually  rose  up  which 
demanded  political  freedom.  This  party  went  by  the  name 
of  *  The  Patriots,'  and  its  chief  leaders  in  the  early  part 
of  the  century  were  Charles  Lucas   and  Anthony  Malone. 


98  THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

Later  on  it  was  joined  by  many  other  great  Irishmen, 
the  chief  of  whom  were  Grattan  and  Flood. 

As  in  English  history,  the  spirit  of  independence  was 
first  shown  by  the  Irish  Parliament  over  the  question  of 
money.  In  1692  the  Commons  rejected  a  Money  Bill 
sent  over  from  England,  because  it  did  not  take  its  rise  in 
their  own  House.  In  1698  William  Molyneux,  a  member 
of  Parliament  for  Dublin  University,  wrote  a  book  which 
caused  a  great  sensation  both  in  England  and  Ireland, 
in  which  he  tried  to  show  that  the  Irish  Parliament  was 
independent  of  that  of  England,  and  had  a  right  to  make 
its  own  laws. 

In  1709  another  Money  Bill  was  rejected  because  it  had 
been  altered  in  England.  In  1749,  175 1,  1753  there  were 
disputes  about  the  surplus  in  the  revenue,  in  which  the 
Commons  refused  to  acknowledge  the  Crown's  right  of 
control.  In  1753  the  Government  retaliated  by  pro- 
roguing Parliament,  and  seizing  the  surplus  revenue  by  an 
order  from  the  King.*  This  caused  great  indignation 
in  Dublin,  where  riots  broke  out.  The  Court  Party  was 
as  usual  conciliated  by  gifts  of  pensions  and  offices,  but 
a  spirit  of  opposition  had  been  raised,  which  grew  steadily 
stronger. 

4.    STATE    OF    THE    COUNTRY. 

The  condition  of  most  of  the  Irish  Roman  Catholics 
was  now  very  miserable.  As  we  have  seen,  the  Penal 
Code  forbade  them  to  acquire  land  or  take  much  part  in 
trade,  their  religion  was  not  recognised,  and  they  had 
no  position  in  the  State.  The  best  of _them  went  abroad, 
and  those  of  them  that  remained  naturally  invested  their 
money  out  of  Ireland,  which  meant  a  loss  to  the  country 
as  a  whole.     The  peasants  were  generally  very  poor,  they 

*  In  succeeding  years  care  was  taken  to  have  no  surplus,  e.g.,  large 
grants  for  building  were  made  to  Trinity  College,  Dublin,  by  Parliament. 


THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  99 

had  no  longer  any  land  of  their  own,  but  lived  as  tenants 
with  very  small  holdings  upon  the  estates  of  landlords^ 
many  of  whom  spent  much  of  their  time  in  England. 
These  *  Absentees  '  employed  either  local  agents  or 
*  Middlemen  '  to  manage  their  lands  ;  the  latter  paid  them 
a  certain  sum,  and  in  return  were  allowed  to  gain  as  much 
profit  as  they  could.  The  lands  over  which  they  had 
charge  were  sometimes  sublet  to  as  many  as  five  or  six 
successive  sub-tenants,  all  of  which  made  a  profit  from 
the  rent  which  they  wrung  out  of  the  occupying  peasants. 
Besides  the  Rack-Rents  paid  to  the  middlemen,  the 
peasants  had  to  pay  Tithes  or  dues  to  the  clergy  of  the 
Anglican  Church,  as  well  as  voluntary  offerings  to  their 
own  priests.  They  had  therefore  very  little  over  for 
themselves,  and  lived  in  the  poorest  of  mud  cabins,  with 
little  other  property  save  their  plot  of  potatoes  which 
supplied  them  with  food. 

A  great  increase  in  pasture  land  took  place  during  the 
early  part  of  the  eighteenth  century.  It  was  found  that 
grazing  needed  less  skill  and  capital,  and  much  less  labour, 
than  agriculture,  and  the  smuggling  of  wool  to  France 
made  the  cattle  trade  a  very  profitable  one.  A  great  many 
of  the  old  tribal  common  lands  were  therefore  enclosed 
and  many  of  the  peasants  were  evicted  from  their  holdings 
to  make  room  for  the  cattle,  and  had  to  take  refuge  in  the 
mountains  and  bogs.  There  was  often  little  work  to  be 
had,  and,  there  were  few  landlords  left  in  the  country 
who  could  give  employment.  It  is  no  wonder  that  at  times 
the  people  became  wild  and  restless,  roaming  about  the 
country  begging,  and  making  a  secret  war  like  the  old 
Tories  and  Rapparees  upon  those  who  carried  out  the 
enclosures  and  collected  the  rents  and  tithes.  In  1761 
a  number  of  men  called  *  Whiteboys  '  from  the  white 
shirts  they  wore  over  their  clothes,  enraged  by  their  heavy 
burdens  and  low  wages,  became  a  real  danger  in  parts  of 


100  THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

the  ca&ntry.  All  over  the  counties  of  Cork,  Waterford, 
Limerick,  and  Tipperary,  they  tore  down  enclosures, 
threatened  the  farmers,  and  mutilated  their  cattle.  They 
became  so  powerful  that  they  even  dared  to  appear  in 
open  daylight,  blowing  their  horns.  The  government 
adopted  severe  measures,  and  the  movement  was  put 
down  by  a  number  of  executions  and  the  formation  of 
large  bodies  of  Volunteers  in  the  various  districts.  Some 
years  later  there  were  similar  outbreaks  conducted  by 
similar  secret  societies,  such  as  the  *  Oakboys  '  and  the 
*  Steelboys,'  among  the  Protestants  of  the  north  who  rose 
against  tithes  and  other  exactions. 

Those  Protestant  gentry  who  did  not  leave  the  country 
usually  flocked  to  Dublin,  which  was  then  the  second  city 
in  the  Empire.  They  there  maintained  splendid  houses 
and  attended  the  Parliament  and  the  Court  of  the  Viceroy. 
They  did  not  spend  all  their  time  in  duelling,  drinking, 
gambling,  and  cock-fighting,  as  is  often  supposed,  but  had 
some  thought  for  the  condition  of  their  country.*  The 
Irish  Parliament  tried  to  encourage  tillage  and  set  up 
public  grain  stores.  Acts  were  passed  to  provide  for  the 
beggars,  and  workhouses  were  erected  in  Dublin  and  Cork. 
Free  schools  were  also  estabUshed  for  the  children  of  the 
poor,  who  were  obliged  on  entering,  however,  to  become 
Protestants.  In  173 1  the  Royal  Dublin  Society  was 
founded  by  a  number  of  Irish  gentlemen  with  the  object 
of  improving  agriculture  and  setting  up  manufactures. 
The  Society,  for  instance,  set  up  model  farms,  and  offered 
prizes  for  lace-making  and  other  industries. 

One  of  the  most  important  features  of  the  time  was 
the  great  development  of  the  North.       The   inhabitants, 

*  There  was  agricultural  development  as  the  century  progressed, 
waste  lands  came  into  cultivation,  rents  rose,  and  the  landed  gentry, 
whose  incomes  were  principally  derived  from  their  estates,  were  rich 
and  prosperous  to  judge  from  their  fine  covmtry  houses  as  well  as  from 
their  mode  of  life  in  Dublin  {see  ph.  105-106). 


THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  10 1 

mostly  Presbyterians,  were  more  industrious  and  intelli- 
gent than  any  others  in  the  country.  The  linen  trade 
had  grown  enormously,  and  Belfast,  though  not  the  political 
capital,  was  one  of  the  most  influential  cities  in  Ireland. 
Cork  was  the  second  city  in  the  country,  and  it  was  noted 
for  its  large  export  trade  in  provisions. 

5.    MOVEMENTS   FOR  REFORM. 

The  English  colonists  in  America  took  up  arms  against 
England  and  the  old  Colonial  System  in  1775.  The 
War  of  American  Independence  raised  the  whole  question 
of  a  mother-country's  rights  over  her  colonies,  and  the 
Protestants  in  Ireland,  especially  the  Presbyterians,  who 
had  always  believed  in  political  freedom,  sympathised 
with  the  rebels,  whose  grievances  were  very  like  their 
own.  France,  taking  revenge  for  the  loss  of  her  colonies, 
aided  the  Americans,  and  Spain  soon  joined  the  League. 

England  was  in  great  difficulty,  and  Irish  Protestants 
grew  alarmed  for  their  own  safety.  Four  thousand  troops 
from  Ireland  had  been  sent  to  serve  in  the  American  war, 
there  was  a  rumour  of  a  French  invasion,  and  the  Channel 
swarmed  with  pirates.*  To  protect  Irish  shores  a  Volun- 
teer corps  was  formed  in  Belfast,  and  then  large  bodies  of 
Volunteers  sprang  up  all  over  the  country,  with  prominent 
men  such  as  Lord  Charlemont  and  the  Duke  of  Leinster 
at  their  head. 

On  the   outbreak   of  the  war  the   English  Parliament 

forbade  the  export  of  Irish  provisions  either  to  France  or 

the  colonies  ;    the  contraband  wool  trade  ceased,  and  the 

markets  for  Irish  linen  were  cut  off.     This  caused  great 

distress  in  Ireland,  and  a  violent  agitation  for  free  trade 

began. 

•  Paul  Jones,  the  famous  buccaneer,  sailed  into  Belfast  Lough 
and  captured  a  ship  of  war  ;  and  the  Government  actually  thought  it 
necessary  to  issue  directions  about  the  course  to  be  pursued  if  the 
French   landed. 


102  THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

The  Volunteers  originally  formed  themselves  as  an  army 
for  self-defence,  and,  though  most  of  them  sympathised 
with  the  Americans,  they  were  perfectly  loyal  to  England. 
It  was  seen,  however,  that  the  time  had  come  for  the 
English  Ministry  to  make  some  concessions.  The  wishes 
of  forty  thousand  armed  Protestants  could  not  be  dis- 
regarded, especially  as  the  situation  in  America  was  growing 
serious,  and  the  government  was  nearly  bankrupt.  More- 
over, English  ideas  about  trade  had  changed,*  and  it  was 
now  thought  that  Free  Trade  might  be  the  best  policy  for 
a  country  in  the  end.  The  Irish  were  therefore  allowed 
to  provide  clothing  for  their  own  forces  abroad,  and 
certain  privileges  were  given  to  Irish  vessels  fishing  off 
the  North  American  coasts.  In  1779  the  Act  which  forbade 
Ireland  to  export  her  wool  and  woollen  materials  was  at 
last  repealed.  Irish  glass  might  be  exported,  and  Ireland 
was  granted  free  trade  with  the  colonies.  This  measure 
was  greeted  in  Ireland  with  the  greatest  joy,  and  Dublin 
was  illuminated  in  honour  of  the  occasion. 

Irish  Protestants  like  Grattan  also  wished  for  some  Con- 
cessions to  the  Roman  Catholics.  The  i8th  century  thinkers, 
especially  in  France,  had  taught  men  to  be  more  tolerant, 
and  it  was  now  felt  that  it  was  not  only  wrong  but  ridiculous 
to  persecute  people  for  their  faith.  For  a  long  time  past 
the  Penal  Laws  had  not  been  strictly  enforced.  Roman 
Catholics  often  used  to  buy  land  and  hand  it  over  to  some 
Protestant  friend,  who  called  it  his  own,  but  allowed  the 
purchaser  his  full  rights,  and  stories  are  told  of  Roman 
Catholic  priests  and  bishops  who  took  refuge  in  the  houses 
of  the  Protestant  gentry .f     Between  1771-1782  a  number 

*  lyargely  owing  to  the  influence  of  Adam  Smith,  whose  Wgalth  of 
Nations  was  published  in  1776. 

t  Lecky  tells  a  story  of  a  Roman  Catholic  bishop  who  was  much 
persecuted  by  a  priest  hunter.  He  was  allowed  by  a  Protestant 
magistrate  to  take  refuge  in  his  house.  An  upper  room  looking  on  the 
garden  was  kept  locked ;  a  report  spread  that  it  was  haunted  kept  the 
servants  and  others  at  a  distance,  and  in  times  of  danger  the  bishop 
climbed  into  it  by  a  ladder  which  lay  in  the  garden  beneath  the  window. 


THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  103 

of  definite  Acts  were  passed  which  abolished  all  the  chief 
articles  of  the  Penal  Code  except  those  which  excluded 
the  Catholics  from  political  power.  In  1771  Catholics 
were  allowed  to  take  leases  of  sixty-one  years  for  fifty  acres 
of  bog,  and  in  1778  they  were  allowed  to  acquire  land  by 
leases  of  999  years.  They  could  also  inherit  land  in  the 
same  way  as  Protestants.  They  were  allowed  about  the 
same  time  to  join  the  army.  The  Test  Act  was  repealed 
in  1780,  and  thus  Dissenters,  or  non- Anglicans,  were 
allowed  full  political  rights. 

The  burning  desire  of  the  Irish  Protestants  was  now  for 
Parliamentary  Independence.  They  felt  that  it  was 
possible  that  England  might  revoke  the  concessions  which 
she  had  made,  and  they  asked  why  joyal  Ireland  should 
not  receive  the  sameTd vantage  as  the  Americans.  Henry 
Flood  was  the  leader  of  the  Patriot  Party  From  1759- 1775, 
when  he  accepted  a  post  under  the  government  and  so 
removed  himself  from  politics.  His  place  was  taken  by 
Henry  Grattan,  who  entered  Parliament  in  the  same 
year  as  the  outbreak  of  the  war,  and  who  had  constantly 
spoken  for  free  trade  and  for  legislative  independence. 
Grattan's  eloquence  swayed  the  House,  but  the  large  body 
of  borough-owners  opposed  every  reform. 

The  Volunteers,  now  80,000  men,  felt  that  it  rested 
upon  them  to  speak  out  the  opinion  of  the  Irish  Protestants. 
On  the  15th  of  February,  1782,  a  large  number  of  delegates 
from  the  Volunteers  of  Ulster  met  at  Dungannon  and 
declared  for  a  free  Parliament. 

At  this  time  a  Whig,  or  Reform,  Ministry,  under  Lord 
Rockingham,  had  come  into  power  in  England.  The 
English  general,  Cornwallis,  had  just  surrendered  at 
Yorktown,  and  Edmund  Burke  made  a  great  impression 
in  the  English  House  by  his  eloquent  pleadings  for  Irish  and 
Americans  alike.  At  Dublin,  Grattan,  in  a  brilliant  speech, 
moved  an  address  to  the  King,  which  declared  the  inde- 


104  "^^^  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

pendence  of  the  Irish  ParHament.  He  was  enthusiasti- 
cally supported.  There  was  great  excitement  in  DubHn, 
where  many  of  the  Volunteers  had  assembled.  The 
English  Ministry  again  gave  way.  Early  in  1782  the  Act 
of  George  I.,  which  bound  Ireland  to  obey  laws  made  in 
England,  was  repealed.  The  Irish  Parliament  was  given 
the  right  to  legislate  for  itself,  and  the  power  of  the  Privy 
Council  was  abolished.  The  Declaration  of  Irish  Par- 
liamentary Independence  was  received  with  great  enthu- 
siasm, and  the  Irish  House  of  Commons,  in  gratitude, 
voted  large  sums  to  the  government  for  the  carrying  on 
of  the  war. 

6.    GRATTAN'S    PARLIAMENT. 

*Grattan's  Parliament,'  as  it  was  called  from  the  large 
part  played  by  Grattan  in  securing  its  independence, 
was  not  really  so  free  in  practice  as  it  was  in  theory.  It 
was  still  subject  to  the  Lord  Lieutenant,  who,  together 
with  all  the  other  great  Irish  officials,  was  appointed  by 
the  English  Ministry,  and  was  responsible  only  to  that 
English  party  which  happened  to  be  in  power.  In  other 
words,  the  Irish  Parliament  had  no  control  over  the 
executive,  and  if  a  dispute  arose  no  method  of  settling  it 
had  been  arranged. 

The  Parliament  itself  was  still  unreformed.  That  is 
to  say,  the  borough-owners  still  held  most  of  the  seats, 
which  they  might  sell  to  the  highest  bidder,  and  the  govern- 
ment, as  before,  was  always  able  to  obtain  their  votes  by 
means  of  offices,  pensions,  and  other  bribes.  Also  the 
Roman  Catholics,  who  formed  three-fourths  of  the  popu- 
lation, were  still  excluded.  It  was  natural  that  the  ques- 
tion of  reform  should  come  up  almost  at  once. 

The  Velunteers  were  not  yet  dissolved,  and  they  desired 
to  see  the  purification  of  the  Irish  Parliament  and  the  admit- 
tance of  Roman  Catholics.     Flood  was  now  their  spokesman 


THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  105 

in  the  Irish  House,  and  he  demanded  an  express  renun- 
ciation from  England  of  her  right  to  legislate  for  Ireland. 
Grattan  and  his  friends  had  been  satisfied  with  the  Act 
of  Repeal,  but  to  gratify  the  Volunteers,  who  were  now 
over  100,000  strong,  a  Renunciation  Bill  was  carried 
through  the  British  Parliament  in  1783.  Flood  then 
brought  forward  a  scheme  for  the  abolition  of  the  borough 
seats,  and  the  Volunteers  held  a  great  meeting  in  Dublin 
to  support  him.  His  Reform  Bill  was  thrown  out,  the 
borough-holders  were  naturally  hostile,  and  the  Irish 
Parliament  resented  the  interference  of  the  Volunteers  in 
the  affairs  of  their  House.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  peaceful 
influence  of  their  leader,  Lord  Charlemont,  violent  disputes 
might  have  arisen,  and  perhaps  civil  war.  As  it  was,  the 
Vokmteers  gradually  dispersed,  and  their  influence  upon 
politics  declined. 

In  1788  a  dispute  arose  between  the  English  and  Irish 
Parliaments.  George  III.  became  insane,  and  the  Whigs 
and  Tories  in  England  had  an  open  quarrel  about  the  powers 
to  be  given  to  a  Regent.  According  to  the  new  doctrine 
the  British  Parliament  had  no  authority  over  the  Irish 
Parliament,  but  when  the  latter,  on  its  own  account,  offered 
the  Prince  of  Wales  the  full  position  of  *  Regent  of  Ireland,' 
the  Tories  made  a  strong  protest.  The  King  soon 
recovered  his  health,  so  the  Regency  Question  did  not 
need  to  be  settled.  It  was  now  seen,  however,  that  on  an 
important  matter  the  Irish  and  English  Houses  might 
have  different  opinions  and  wish  to  act  differently  also. 

For  a  time  events  flowed  on  quietly,  and  the  country 
became  a  great  deal  more  prosperous.  The  abolition  of 
most  of  the  laws  against  Irish  trade  had  led  to  an  increase 
of  commerce,  and  agriculture  had  improved  on  account 
of  recent  bounties  on  the  export  of  corn.  The  government 
also  gave  money  for  canals,  harbours,  and  fisheries  ;  the 
country  was   being  opened  up,  and  there  was  a  better 


I06  THE  PERIOD  OF   PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

communication  with  England.  Twenty  stage  coaches 
ran  from  Dublin  to  distant  parts  of  Ireland,''^  and  six  weekly 
mails  passed  between  London  and  Dublin.  The  cele- 
brated English  traveller,  Arthur  Young  (1776- 1779), 
was  much  struck  by  the  appearance  of  the  country,  the 
excellence  of  the  roads,  and  the  advance  in  Irish  trade. 
Since  1748  he  notes  that  the  linen  exports  had  trebled, 
the  rental  of  the  Kingdom  doubled,  while  the  general 
exports  to  Great  Britain  had  more  than  doubled.  There 
were  still  a  number  of  prohibitive  duties,  hov/ever,  placed 
by  England  upon  Irish  imports,  and  these  were  not  removed. 
The  great  French  Revolution  broke  out  in  1789.  The 
French  people  had  been  crushed  for  centuries  under  the 
tyranny  of  the  King  and  the  nobles,  and,  taught  to  believe 
in  liberty  by  their  philosophers,  and  encouraged  by  the 
example  of  the  Americans,  they  burst  into  open  revolt. 
They  set  up  a  democratic  government,  and  swept  away  the 
King  and  all  the  old  abuses  of  both  Church  and  State. 

The  action  of  the  French  people  had  a  tremendous 
effect  on  men's  minds,  and  in  Ireland,  as  elsewhere,  it 
stirred  up  passionate  hopes  of  larger  and  more  radical 
reform.  It  was  seen  that  the  Irish  Parliament  would  never 
do  an)^hing  for  the  country.  Grattan  brought  forward 
the  questions  of  parliamentary  corruption,  the  admission  of 
Roman  CathoUcs,  and  the  absolute  freedom  of  trade  again 
and  again,  and  in  the  end  withdrew  from  the  House  of 
Commons  in  disgust.  John  Fitzgibbon,  the  x\ttorney- 
General  (created  in  1795  Earl  of  Clare),  was  the  leader  of 
the  old  Court  party,  then  the  party  in  power.  He  was 
against  reform  of  all  kinds.  He  did  not  beheve  in  giving 
more  power  to  the  Roman  Catholics,  and  thought  things 
were  best  as  they  stood. 

*  Thouc'h  there  were  highwaymen  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood 
of  Dublin'^  travelling  in  Ireland  was  considered  to  be  actually  safer  than 
in  England.  "  A  comfortable  drcumstance,"  says  Mrs.  Delany,  in  her 
Memoirs  "  belonging  to  this  country,  is  that  the  roads  are  so  good  and 
free  from  robbers,  that  we  may  drive  safely  at  any  hour  of  the  night." 


THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  IO7 

The  Presbyterians  of  Ulster  were  of  all  Irishmen  perhaps 
the  most  enthusiastic  for  the  principles  of  the  French.  They 
formed  national  guards,  as  in  Paris  ;  they  rejoiced  over 
French  victories,  and  drank  the  healths  of  Mirabeau  and 
other  revolutionary  Frenchm^i.  Most  of  them  belonged 
to  the  industrious  and  intelligent  middle  class,  which  cor- 
responded to  the  French  *  bourgeoisie,'  whose  influence 
had  so  largely  made  the  Revolution.  Like  the  latter, 
they  hated  the  payment  of  tithe,  and  desired  a  free  Par- 
liament which  should  really  represent  the  country. 

In  October,  1791,  Wolfe  Tone,  a  young  Dublin  barrister, 
founded  the  Society  of  the  United  Irishmen  at  Belfast. 
The  Society  at  first  sought  to  unite  Irishmen  of  all  reUgions 
in  order  to  gain  Catholic  Emancipation  and  parliamentary 
reform,  but  as  time  went  on  it  became  revolutionary, 
and  desired  complete  separation  from  England.  A 
branch  was  estabUshed  in  Dublin,  with  Napper  Tandy, 
a  Protestant  shopkeeper,  as  its  secretary,  and  other  branches 
were  formed  in  other  parts  of  Ireland.  The  Roman 
Catholics  were  also  discontented,  and  now  that  the  more 
enterprising  of  them,  owing  to  their  improved  position, 
were  staying  at  home,  they  also  began  to  wish  for  political 
rights. 

The  English  government  was  growing  alarmed  at  the 
attitude  of  the  Presbyterians  and  at  the  agitation  in  Ireland 
among  the  Protestants  for  reform ;  it  was  decided  there- 
fore to  grant  some  relief  to  the  Roman  Cathohcs.  In 
January,  1793,  a  Bill  was  passed  through  both  ParUa- 
ments  which  allowed  those  who  held  land  worth  forty 
shillings  a  year  to  vote  in  Parliamentary  elections.  They 
might  also  be  magistrates,  and  were  admitted  to  most  of 
the  civil  offices.  They  could  not,  however,  sit  in  Par- 
liament. Thus  the  Catholic  Relic!  Bill  of  1793  was  only 
a  half- measure,  and  instead  of  pacifying  the  Roman 
Catholics,  only  made  them  hope  for  more. 


I08  THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

In  January,  1795,  Lord  Fitzwilliam,  who  was  openly 
in  favour  of  complete  freedom  for  Roman  Catholics,  was 
sent  over  as  Viceroy.  All  hopes  were  raised  and  hundreds 
of  petitions  for  relief  were  sent  in.  Fitzwilliam  began  by 
dismissing  some  of  the  borough-holders  and  corrupt 
officials  of  the  Castle.  These  hurried  over  to  England 
and  gained  the  ear  of  the  Court  and  of  the  English  minister, 
Pitt.  The  result  was  that  on  the  23rd  February  Lord 
Fitzwilliam  was  recalled,  and  Lord  Camden,  who  was  in 
sympathy  with  the  Court  party,  was  sent  over  as  Viceroy 
in  March. 

The  extension  of  the  franchise  to  the  Catholics,  and  the 
disappointment  caused  by  Lord  Fitzwilliam's  recall, 
unfortunately  led  to  a  revival  of  all  the  old  bad  feeling 
between  Protestants  and  Roman  Catholics.  The  quarrels 
between  them  led  to  the  founding  of  the  *  Defenders  ' 
and  *  Peep  0'  Day  Boys.'  The  Defenders  were  something 
like  the  Whiteboys ;  they  made  war  upon  rents  and  tithes, 
and  attacked  Protestant  houses.  The  Peep  o'  Day  Boys, 
in  their  turn,  attacked  the  Roman  Catholics. 

In  1795,  after  serious  rioting  near  Armagh,  the  Orange 
Society  was  formed  among  the  Protestant  peasantry 
of  Ulster  as  a  league  of  defence.  A  Catholic  rising  was 
feared,  and  there  were  outrages  and  cruelties  on  both  sides. 

7.  THE  REBELLION  OF  1798. 
The  Revolutionary  government  in  France  declared  war 
upon  England  in  February,  1793,  and  as  it  was  seen  that  an 
Irish  rising  would  greatly  handicap  the  English  in  the 
struggle,  it  was  determined  to  find  out  the  exact  state  of 
the  country.  Wolfe  Tone,  the  founder  of  the  United 
Irishmen,  was  an  ardent  revolutionary,  and  he  desired  a 
complete  break  with  England,  and  the  establishment  of 
an  Irish  republic,  but  he  saw  that  Ireland  would  be  unable 
to  do  anything  unless  she  received  aid  from  France.     He 


THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY.  IO9 

therefore  drew  up  a  memorial  upon  Irish  affairs  for  the 
French  government.  This  document  fell  into  the  hands 
of  a  spy,  who  delivered  it  up  to  the  Dublin  officials.  Tone 
was  not  harshly  dealt  with,  and  was  allowed  to  depart 
to  America.  He  soon  made  his  way  to  Paris,  and  he 
persuaded  the  Directory  to  do  something  for  the  Irish 
cause.  An  expedition  was  fitted  out  in  December,  1706, 
under  the  briUiant  general  Koche,  but,  though  some  of  the 
French  ships  reached  Bantry  Bay,  where  they  lay  inactive 
for  a  week,  most  of  them  were  separated  by  a  snow  storm, 
and  the  whole  expedition  was  a  failure. 

In  1797  the  Dutch  admiral,  De  Winter,  also  prepared 
in  the  '  Texel '  an  expedition  to  Ireland,  but  he  vvas 
delayed  by  the  weather,  and  when  he  sailed  out  was  com- 
pletely defeated  by  Admiral  Duncan  at  the  Battle  of 
Camperdown  on  October  nth. 

Had  either  of  these  expeditions  landed,  the  English 
power  in  Ireland  would  have  been  in  very  great  danger. 
England  had  her  hands  full  of  the  war  with  France ;  there 
was  a  mutiny  in  the  fleet,  and  both  Protestants  and  Roman 
Catholics  in  Ireland  were  ready  for  a  rising. 

As  it  was,  the  situation  was  so  alarming  that  Martial  Law 
was  proclaimed  in  the  north.  Those  who  were  suspected 
of  having  arms  were,  in  many  cases,  tortured  or  flogged ; 
many  houses  and  cabins  were  burnt,  courts  were  set  up 
to  try  and  punish  offenders  on  the  spot,  and  many  innocent 
persons  suffered  with  the  guihy.  This  cruel  treatment  at 
the  hands  of  the  half-disciplined  Irish  militia  and  yeomanry 
naturally  kept  many  of  the  malcontents  from  a  rebellion, 
and  in  any  case  they  could  do  nothing  without  arms.  A 
rising  had,  however,  been  arranged  for  the  middle  of  May, 
1798,  and  the  southern  forces  were  to  be  led  by  Lord 
Edward  Fitzgerald,  the  brother  of  the  Duke  of  Leinster. 

Lord  Edward  was  an  enthusiastic  young  nobleman, 
who  sympathised  with  the  French  Revolution,  and  he  held 


no  THE   PERIOD   OF  PROTESTANT    ASCENDANCY. 

very  much  the  same  views  as  Wolfe  Tone.  He  had  served  in 
the  EngHsh  army  and  in  America,  and  he  had  joined  the 
Society  of  the  United  Irishmen,  now  a  rebel  body  which 
extended  all  over  Ireland.  As  he  was  a  Protestant,  a 
soldier,  and  a  member  of  a  family  illustrious  in  Irish 
history,  the  government  looked  upon  him  as  the  most 
dangerous  of  the  rebels.  A  reward  of  £i,ooo  was  offered 
to  anyone  who  would  give  him  up.  He  was  betrayed  by 
one  of  his  followers,  and  arrested  in  Dublin  on  the  19th 
May.  He  made  a  desperate  resistance,  and  received  a 
wound  from  which  he  died  in  prison  in  a  few  days. 

On  the  23rd  May  the  rising,  now  without  a  leader, 
broke  out  in  Dublin,  Kildare,  and  Meath.  The  mail 
coaches  were  stopped  on  the  roads,  and  the  rebels  attacked 
houses  and  villages,  plundering  and  murdering  wherever 
they  went.  The  troops,  mainly  a  Volunteer  force  of 
Protestant  yeomanry  and  militia,  which  were  sent  against 
them,  behaved,  in  their  turn,  with  equal  cruelty.  Hun- 
dreds of  peasants  were  plundered  and  massacred,  though 
many  of  them,  as  in  Ulster,  were  perfectly  loyal.  Dublin 
itself  was  carefully  guarded  by  the  citizens,  but  severe 
fighting  went  on  all  round,  and  every  day  the  bodies  of 
rebels  were  brought  into  the  city  in  carts,  and  shewn  in 
the  Castle  Yard. 

By  the  action  of  the  government  and  of  the  secret  societies, 
all  the  old  bad  passions  of  the  seventeenth  century  were 
aroused.  Every  effort  was  made  by  unscrupulous  poli- 
ticians to  set  the  Orangemen  and  the  Catholic  peasants 
at  each  other's  throats.  They  told  the  people  that  the 
Orangemen  would  wipe  out  the  Roman  Catholic  religion, 
and  that  the  French  were  coming  to  give  them  back  their 
lands. 

Father  John  Murphy,  a  Roman  Catholic  priest, 
whose  church  had  been  burnt  by  the  yeomanry,  led 
4,000  of  the  rebels  to  the  Hill  of  Oulart,  near  Enniscorthy, 
where  they  defeated  a  body  of  militia  from  Cork  which 


THE  PERIOD   OF   PROTESTANT    ASCENDANCY  III 

was  sent  against  them.  Enniscorthy  was  attacked  and 
captured,  and  the  rebels,  over  7,000  strong,  took  up  a 
position  upon  Vinegar  Hill  close  by.  Wexford  and  Gorey 
were  then  taken,  and  an  attack  was  made  upon  New  Ross 
where  they  were  opposed  by  General  Johnston  with  a 
large  body  of  troops.  The  rebels  were  armed  only  with 
pikes,  pitchforks,  or  rusty  bayonets,  and  formed  a  rabble 
rather  than  an  army.  They  rushed  without  fear,  how- 
ever, upon  the  EngUsh  guns,  one  man  even  thrusting  his 
hat  and  wig  into  the  very  mouth  of  a  cannon  and  calling  to 
his  comrades  to  come  on.  The  rebels  took  New  Ross,  but 
were  soon  driven  out  again.  Some  fugitives,  maddened 
by  the  news  that  the  soldiers  were  giving  no  quarter  to 
the  prisoners,  burnt  down  a  barn  at  Scullabogue,  where 
about  two  hundred  prisoners,  most  of  whom  were 
Protestants,  were  shut  up,  and  when  some  of  these  tried 
to  escape  they  were  thrust  back  into  the  flames  with  pikes. 
Bagenal  Harvey,  a  Protestant  gentleman,  who  acted  as 
leader  in  Wexford,  was  horrified  at  this  dreadful  outrage, 
but  he  could  do  nothing  to  restrain  the  people. 

The  tide  of  success  for  the  rebels  now  turned  ;  they 
were  defeated  at  Arklow,  and  General  Lake  surrounded 
Vinegar  Hill  with  a  large  force.  They  were  there  again 
defeated  on  the  21st  June,  and  lost  both  Enniscorthy  and 
Wexford.  The  leaders  were  executed,  and  the  rebellion 
was  crushed,  though  there  was  still  some  unimportant 
fighting  in  Carlow,  Queen's  County,  Wicklow,  and  Kildare. 

Several  of  the  Presbyterians  in  the  North,  especially  in 
Counties  Antrim  and  Down,  also  rose  in  rebellion,  but  the 
movement  was  suppressed.  The  great  body  of  the 
Presbyterians  began  to  see  that  the  French  navy  was  not 
strong  enough  to  give  any  real  aid,  and  they  did  not  approve 
of  the  way  in  which  the  rebelHon  had  been  conducted. 
Steps  were  taken  to  dissolve  the  union  between  themselves 
and  the  Roman  Catholics  by  spreading  amongst  them 
exaggerated  reports  of  the  Protestant  massacres  in  the 


112  THE  PERIOD  OF  PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

South,  and  by  representing  the  Southern  rebellion  as  a 
purely  religious  movement. 

The  French  were  now  very  little  interested  in  Ireland, 
as  they  meant  to  attack  England  in  the  East,  and  had  sent 
their  fleet  under  Buonaparte  to  Egypt,  where  it  was  defeated 
on  the  ist  August,  1798,  by  Nelson  at  the  Battle  of  the  Nile. 

A  small  expedition  was,  however,  dispatched  under 
General  Humbert,  and  landed  at  Killala,  in  Mayo,  on 
August  22nd.  Humbert  expected  to  find  the  country 
in  full  insurrection,  but  the  rebellion  in  Wexford  had  already 
been  put  down,  and  the  peasantry  of  the  West  were  too 
poor  and  ignorant  to  rise  on  account  of  their  wrongs. 
Encouraged,  however,  by  the  presence  of  the  French 
soldiers,  many  of  them  flocked  to  join  the  invader.  These 
untrained  auxiliaries  could  render  very  little  effective 
assistance.  Humbert  marched  to  Castlebar,  where  a  large 
force  was  assembled  to  bar  his  progress.  Though  the 
English  were  much  superior  in  numbers  and  equipment, 
they  consisted  for  the  most  part  of  militia,  and,  with  the 
exception  of  their  cavalry,  were  no  match  for  the  regulars. 
They  fled  almost  without  striking  a  blow,  leaving  their 
5uns  and  colours  in  the  hands  of  the  French.  But  Hum- 
bert's small  forces  were  surrounded  by  the  new  Lord 
Lieutenant,  Cornwallis,  with  20,000  men,  and  he  was 
Forced  to  surrender  on  the  8th  September. 

Two  other  French  expeditions  were  similar  failures. 
One  appeared  off  the  coast  of  Donegal,  and  departed 
almost  at  once.  The  other,  under  Admiral  Bompard, 
arrived  in  Lough  S willy,  and  was  attacked  by  an  English 
squadron.  Wolfe  Tona,  who  was  with  the  expedition,  was 
captured,  and  sentenced  to  be  hanged.  He  committed 
suicide  in  prison. 

On  the  17th  July,  1798,  a  pardon  had  been  promised  to 
all  who  would  lay  down  their  arms  and  take  the  Oath  of 
Allegiance. 


THE  PERIOD   OF   PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY,  I13 

The  rebellion  had  failed  from  the  lack  of  union 
between  the  Protestants  and  the  Roman  Catholics.  Their 
political  aims  had  been,  roughl)?^,  the  same,  but  while 
Ulster  cared  most  about  republican  reforms,  the  Roman 
Catholics  of  the  South  were  chiefly  anxious  to  regain  their 
lands,  and  to  have  the  tithes  and  heavy  rents  done  away 
with  ;  also  the  old  differences  of  race  and  religion  which 
had  laid  hidden  for  so  long  had  again  risen  to  the  surface. 

8.    THE  UNION. 

England  was  now  in  the  midst  of  her  great  war  with 
Napoleon,  and  she  could  not  afford  to  be  fettered  by  Irish 
affairs,  nor  run  the  risk  of  Ireland  allying  herself  with 
France.  *  Ireland  in  its  present  state,'  wrote  a  politician 
who  knew  the  country,  *  will  pull  down  England.  She 
is  a  ship  on  fire,  and  must  either  be  cast  off  or  extin- 
guished.' The  plan  of  governing  Ireland  through  a 
small  part  of  the  Protestant  colony  had  failed ;  the  Irish 
Parliament  had  lost  all  authority,  and  could  not  keep 
order,  for  both  Protestants  and  Roman  Catholics  were 
now  afraid  of  losing  their  lives  and  property. 

The  Union  between  England  and  Scotland  had 
benefited  both  countries,  and,  as  a  Union  with  Ireland 
had  also  long  been  thought  of,  Pitt  now  determined  to 
bring  it  about. 

The  Irish  Parliament  was  at  first  opposed  to  the  plan, 
and  many  able  men  put  forward  arguments  against  it. 
It  was  believed,  for  instance,  that  taxation  would  increase, 
that  Irish  interests  would  be  neglected,  and  that  the  Pro- 
testant gentry  would  leave  the  country.  The  lawyers 
were  against  it,  for  it  was  more  to  their  interest  to  have 
a  ParUament  at  home.  The  Dublin  tradesmen  and  shop- 
keepers feared  a  loss  of  trade.  The  great  holders  of 
borough  seats  knew  that  they  would  be  deprived  of  a 
great  source  of  gain.     On  the  other  hand,  it  was  supported 


114  THE  PERIOD  OF   PROTESTANT   ASCENDANCY. 

by  the  manufacturers  of  the  North,  who  believed  that  a 
Union  would  increase  their  business,  and  also  by  the 
Roman  Catholic  hierarchy  and  many  of  tfve  upper  class 
Roman  CathoUcs,  who  were  led  to  believe  that  in  return 
for  their  support  they  would  obtain  Catholic  Emanci- 
pation.* On  the  whole,  however,  the  people  were  in- 
different, for  they  were  exhausted  by  the  rebellion,  and 
had  no  heart  for  politics. 

The  Lord  Lieutenant,  the  Marquis  of  Cornwallis,  and 
the  Chief  Secretary,  Lord  Castlereagh,  were  instructed  to 
secure  a  majority  of  votes  for  the  government.  Each 
borough  seat  was  bought  up  for  ,£  15,000,  and  peerages, 
offices,  and  pensions  were  freely  bestowed.  When  the 
Irish  Parliament  met,  therefore,  for  the  last  time  on  the 
15th  January,  1800,  both  Houses  were  packed  with  the 
supporters  of  the  Government,  and  the  Act  of  Union 
was  carried  by  a  majority  of  forty-six. 

Ireland  was  to  form  one  kingdom  with  England,  but 
the  Irish  Administration,  formed  of  the  Viceroy,  his 
Secretary,  and  the  Privy  Council,  was  to  remain.  Ireland 
was  also  to  have  her  own  law  courts,  her  debt  was  to  be 
kept  separate,  and  she  was  to  be  separately  taxed.  The 
three  hundred  members  of  the  old  Irish  House  of  Com- 
mons were  reduced  to  one  hundred,  and  these  were 
to  take  their  places  at  Westminster.  Thirty-two  Irish 
peers  were  to  sit  in  the  English  House  of  Lords.  Ireland 
was  to  contribute  two-seventeenths  towards  general  expen- 
diture, but  all  her  exports  were  to  go  free  of  duty  and 
were  to  receive  the  same  bounties  and  privileges  as  English 
goods.  The  Anglican  Church  was  to  be  recognised  as 
the  State  Church,  and  to  be  supported,  as  before,  by  the 
incomes  from  its  estates,  and  tithes  levied  from  all  culti- 
vators of  the  soil,  whether  Roman  Cathohc  or  Protestant. 

*  Pitt  wished  to  combine  the  Union  with  the  emancipation  of  the 
Irish  Catholics,  and  State  provision  for  the  Roman  Cathohc  clergy, 
but  he  was  opposed  by  Lord  Clare  and  others.  George  III.  was  also 
hostile  to  the  concession. 


THE   PERIOD  OF   PROTESTANT    ASCENDANCY.  II5 

It  might  have  been  better  if  the  Act  of  Union  had  been 
passed  with  the  full  consent  of  all  parties  in  Ireland,  but 
this  was  not  possible,  and  it  was  not  the  fashion  at  the 
beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  to  consult  people  about 
their  own  government.  The  members  of  the  great  Congress 
of  European  powers,  for  instance,  which  met  at  Vienna  in 
1 81 5,  after  the  war,  arranged  the  affairs  of  various  states 
as  they  thought  best,  placing  rulers  over  them,  joining  some 
together,  and  separating  others,  and  no  one  considered 
this  strange.  Again,  the  Roman  Catholics  might  have 
been  allowed  to  sit  in  the  English  Parliament  and  have 
their  share  of  political  rights,  but,  as  it  was,  the  Roman 
Catholic  majority  in  Ireland  were  treated  exactly  as  vvere 
the  few  Roman  Catholics  in  England,  and  the  English 
people,  alarmed  by  the  excesses  of  the  French  Revolution, 
were  in  no  mood  for  reform. 

England  was,  however,  at  this  time  doing  the  very 
greatest  service  for  every  country  in  Europe,  including 
Ireland,  in  opposing  Napoleon  ;  and  as  she  could  not  have 
carried  on  the  war  without  the  Union,  she  had  to  bring 
it  about  as  best  she  could. 


1 5  IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
IRELAND    SINCE    THE    UNION. 


I.    CATHOLIC    EMANCIPATION. 

The  Roman  Catholics  in  Ireland  had  to  wait  for  nearly 
thirty  years  after  the  Union  before  they  received  full 
political  rights.  This  was  because  the  feeling  of  the 
upper  classes  in  England  was  against  all  change.  They 
were  afraid  of  the  rebellious  spirit  which  had  spread  from 
France  amongst  the  English  working  classes,  leading  them 
to  clamour  for  more  political  power  and  for  the  reform  of 
Parliament. 

It  was  also  known  that  some  of  the  Roman  Catholics 
were  intriguing  with  France  and  with  Napoleon.  In 
1803  Robert  Emmet,  an  ardent  young  man  with  revo- 
lutionary ideas,  began  to  correspond  with  some  Irishmen 
in  Paris  and  formed  a  plan  for  another  rebellion.  The 
plot  was  discovered  before  his  preparations  were  fully 
made,  and  all  that  actually  happened  was  a  riot  in  the 
streets  of  DubUn.  This  was  enough,  however,  to 
strengthen  the  feeling  in  England  against  the  Irish  Roman 
Catholics. 

George  III.  was  also  opposed  to  any  concessions,  and 
though  Pitt  had  practically  undertaken  to  carry  through 
a  Bill,  no  measure  could  become  law  without  the  King's 
consent. 

The  Irish  Roman  Catholics  needed  a  leader,  and  they 
found  one  in  Daniel  O'Connell,  an  extremely  able  young 
Roman  Catholic,  with  a  great  gift  of  eloquence,  who  had 
studied   in   France,   and   who   was   already   a   prominent 


IRELAND    SINCE  THE   UNION.  II7 

member  of  the  Irish  Bar.  In  1823  he  founded  the  cele- 
brated Catholic  Association  in  Dublin,  by  means  of  which 
Catholic  Emancipation  was  finally  won. 

As  time  went  on,  and  England  was  victorious  in  the  war 
with  France,  the  feeling  against  the  Roman  Catholics 
diminished.  Grattan  had  pleaded  for  emancipation  on 
several  occasions  in  the  House  of  Commons,  the  Whigs 
took  up  the  question,  and  bills  were  passed  through  the 
Lower  House,  though  they  were  thrown  out  by  the  Lords. 
Meanwhile  O'Connell,  who  had  become  extraordinarily 
popular  with  the  people,  was  addressing  large  meetings 
of  Roman  Catholics  all  over  Ireland.  He  won  over  the 
priests  to  be  his  allies,  and  branches  of  the  Association  were 
everywhere  set  up.  A  fund  for  expenses  was  also  started, 
to  which  even  the  poorest  were  invited  to  subscribe,  and 
by  the  end  of  1824  this  Catholic  Rent,  as  it  was  called, 
was  coming  in  at  the  rate  of  over  £600  a  week.  This  shows 
the  enthusiasm  of  the  people,  and  their  belief  in  O'Connell 
as  a  leader. 

The  number  of  evictions  at  this  time  amongst  the 
peasantry  caused  great  discontent  and  led  to  a  revival  of 
Whiteboy  outrages.  O'Connell  and  the  priests  were 
against  all  violence  and  crime,  but  while  they  kept  the 
passions  of  the  people  in  check,  the  Association  guarded 
the  interests  of  the  Roman  Catholic  peasantry  and  did 
what  it  could  to  prevent  unfair  evictions. 

No  Roman  Catholics  could  as  yet  sit  in  Parliament  on 
account  of  the  oaths  which  every  member  was  required  to 
take.  But  in  1828,  when  a  vacancy  occurred  for  Clare, 
O'Connell  decided  to  stand.  The  gentry  all  voted  against 
him,  but  the  peasantry,  headed  by  the  priests,  were  for  him 
almost  to  a  man.  He,  therefore,  was  returned  in  triumph 
by  a  large  majority,  though  he  could  not  take  his  seat. 

The  Clare  Election  led  to  great  excitement  among  the 
Irish  Roman   Catholics,  and  the  Association  decided  to 


Il8  /RELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION. 

put  Up  their  own  candidate  for  every  county  at  the  next 
general  election.  Ireland  was  really  ready  for  a  rebellion, 
and  this,  together  with  the  growth  of  the  reform  move- 
ment in  England,  decided  Wellington,  who  was  then 
Prime  Minister,  against  his  personal  opinion,  to  bring  in 
a  Bill  of  Conciliation. 

In  1829  the  measure  known  as  Catholic  Emancipation 
was  passed.  Roman  Catholics  might  now  take  their  seats 
in  Parliament,  and  all  offices  were  open  to  them  except 
those  of  Regent,  Irish  Viceroy,  and  Lord  Chancellor. 
The  Chancellorship,  however,  was  thrown  open  in  time. 

Like  the  Relief  Act  of  1793,  the  Catholic  Emancipation 
Act  of  1829  was  not  a  full  measure  of  reform.  The  peasants 
were  obliged  to  support  their  own  priests  and  to  pay 
tithes  to  the  Protestant  clergy.  In  1838,  however,  tithe  was 
commuted  or  changed  into  a  rent-charge  w^hich  was  payable 
directly,  not  by  the  occupiers  of  the  soil,  but  by  the  land- 
lords. 

In  1869  the  English  Church  in  Ireland  was  disestablished. 
It  lost  its  favoured  position  as  the  State  Church,  and, 
though  its  clergy  were  fully  compensated,  much  of  its 
revenue  went  for  education  and  other  purposes.  At  the 
same  time  State  grants  to  other  religious  bodies  were 
discontinued.  The  *  Regium  Donum '  was  taken  from 
the  Presbyterians,  and  the  sums  which  had  been  given  to 
the  Roman  Catholic  College  of  Maynooth  for  the  education 
of  priests  were  no  longer  continued. 

Under  the  Penal  Laws  the  Roman  Catholics  had  very 
little  chance  to  obtain  education  ;  the  Charter  Schools, 
founded  in  1733,  were  to  educate  children  as  Protestants, 
and  the  Kildare  Street  Schools,  founded  in  181 1,  were 
not  suitable  for  CathoHcs.  The  National  School  System, 
however,  was  set  up  in  1831,  and,  as  all  rehgious  teaching 
was  given  separately,  children  of  all  creeds  might  attend 


IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION.  119 

For  higher  education  there  had  always  been  Trinity 
College,  Dublin,  founded  in  1591,  but  Roman  Catholics 
were  only  admitted  to  degrees  in  1793,  and  to  all  scholar- 
ships and  appointments  within  the  College  in  1873.  The 
Queen's  Colleges  of  Cork,  Galway,  and  Belfast  were 
founded  in  1845.  The  Royal  University  was  established 
as  an  examining  body  in  1879,  ^^^  ^^^^  in  turn  was  abolished 
by  the  Irish  Universities  Act,  1908,  which  has  set  up  two 
new  Universities,  both  free  from  any  formal  religious  test, 
one  being  in  Belfast,  the  other  in  Dublin.  Thus  a  way 
has  been  found  of  procuring  for  Catholics  as  well  as 
Protestants  the   advantages  of  higher  education. 

2.    THE  LAND  QUESTION. 

After  the  first  English  conquest  of  Ireland  in  the  twelfth 
century,  the  Anglo-Norman  lords  gained  a  large  part 
of  the  Irish  land  and  held  it  under  the  Feudal  System. 
As  time  went  on,  we  saw  that  most  of  them  mixed  with 
their  Irish  tenants,  took  up  Irish  ways,  and  practically 
became  Celtic  chieftains. 

After  the  Elizabethan  conquest  there  were  again  large 
confiscations,  and  English  and  Scotch  settlers  were  planted 
upon  the  land  throughout  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth 
centuries.  The  new  landlords  either '  drove  the  old 
Irish  away  or  else  kept  them  as  tenants  and  labourers 
upon  their  estates.  They  looked  upon  the  lands  as 
their  own,  by  right  of  conquest,  and  they  held  them 
according  to  EnglislTTaw^  TheTiali v es ,"  on  the  other  hand, 
remembered  that  the  same  lands  had~b"een  held  by  their 
ancestors,  and  they  hate3  the  new"  settlers,  not  only 
because  they  had  taken  the  lands  of  the  Irish,  but  also 
because  they  were  of  a  different  race  and  religion. 

In  England,  landlords  and  tenants,  who  were  both  of  the 
same  race,  had  each  their  own  rights  ;  the  landlord  let  out  his 
lands  to  tenants  with  whom  he  arranged  a  fair  rent,  an^ 


120  IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION. 

supplied  his  farms  before  letting  them  with  everything 
that  was  necessary,  such  as  drainage,  fences,  and  outhouses. 
In  Ireland,  however,  the  landlords,  as  conquerors,  were  the 
absolute  masters  of  their  tenants ;  they  often  lived  out  of 
the  country,  and  managed  their  estates  through  middlemen, 
who  ground  down  the  people.  The  Irish  tenant  had  to 
build  and  put  up  everything  for  himself  ;  and  when  he 
was  evicted  or  turned  off  his  plot,  as  he  might  be  at  very 
'short  notice,  he  was  not  compensated  for  improvements 
v/hich  he  had  made.  He  had,  therefore,  no  real  right  or 
interest  in  the  soil,  and  no  encouragement  to  be  thrifty 
or  to  improve  his  farm  or  husbandry.  The  custom  of 
Tenant  Right  in  Ulster  generally  protected  the  Ulster 
tenant  from  unfair  eviction,  and  gave  him  practically  the 
right  of  ownership  over  his  improvements,  which  he  could 
sell  to  his  successor  ;  but  in  the  rest  of  Ireland,  where 
a  peasant  had  made  improvements,  the  landlord  could 
raise  the  rent  and  so  pocket  what  profit  had  been  gained. 

Owing  to  the  laws  against  Irish  manufactures  and 
industries  in  the  eighteenth  century,  the  peasants  had 
become  absolutely  dependent  upon  the  land.  After  the 
Relief  Bill  of  1793,  which  conferred  the  40s.  franchise 
upon  them,  the  landlords  who  hoped  to  be  supported 
by  the  votes  of  their  tenantry  encouraged  the  increase 
of  small  holdings  upon  their  estates.  From  this  and  other 
causes,  such  as  the  cheapness  of  food,  the  population 
steadily  grew ;  there  was  severe  competition  for  land, 
and  rents  became  high. 

During  the  long  war  with  Napoleon  foreign  markets 
had  been  closed,  and  there  was  a  great  demand  in  England 
for  Irish  cattle  and  corn  ;  more  lands  were  brought  under 
tillage,  and  rents  were  raised  still  further.  With  the 
peace  of  1815  the  demand  for  Irish  produce  fell  off,  and 
the  landlords  lost  most  of  their  trade.  Meanwhile,  owing 
to  the  recent  prosperity,  the  numbers  of  the  peasantry 


IRELAND   SINCE  THE  UNION.  121 

had  grown  enormously,  so  that  their  wages  now  fell,  and 
as  they  were  often  unable  to  pay  their  rents,  many  of  them 
were  evicted.  Some  of  the  landlords,  for  the  sake  of 
their  farms,  wished  to  consolidate  their  properties  and  to 
do  away  with  many  of  the  small  holdings,  and  as  the 
Emancipation  Act  of  1829  took  away  the  franchise  from 
the  forty-shiUing  freeholders,  they  no  longer  had  the  same 
interest  in  maintaining  a  numerous  tenantry. 

The  peasants,  especially  in  the  South  and  West,  became 
miserably  poor  and  wretched,  and,  owing  to  their  great 
numbers,  generally  sank  into  the  position  of  agricultural 
labourers,  merely  renting  their  cabins  and  small  potato 
plots  from  their  employers. 

In  1844  the  Government  appointed  a  Commission, 
with  the  Earl  of  Devon  as  Chairman,  to  enquire  into  the 
grievances  of  Irish  tenants,  and  the  evidence  collected  by 
this  body  is  our  chief  authority  for  the  condition  of  the 
people  just  before  the  famine.  In  many  districts  the 
potato  formed  the  sole  diet  of  the  labourer  and  his  family, 
because  it  w^as  the  cheapest  food  upon  which  they  could 
possibly  live. 

In  1845*  the  potato  crop  was  suddenly  blighted,  and  so 
a  large  number  of  people  were  deprived  of  food.  Thou- 
sands of  persons  perished  not  only  from  hunger,  but  from 
the  fever  which  usually  accompanies  famine.  The 
English  people  did  what  they  could  to  relieve  the  distress  ; 
the  Government  ordered  large  quantities  of  Indian  corn 
from  the  United  States,  and  established  depots  throughout 
the  country  to  distribute  food.  Rehef  works,  such  as  the 
making  of  roads,  were  also  set  up  to  give  employment 
to  the  destitute.  Money,  clothing,  and  food  came  from 
all  over  the  world,  even  from  Turkey,  while  the  English 

*  The  blight  first  appeared  in  1845,  and  was  only  partial.  In  1846 
the  crop  was  almost  totally  destroyed.  By  1847  the  disease  had 
greatly  diminished. 


122  IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION. 

and  American  peoples  vied  with  each  other  in  the  sacrifices 
which  they  made.  Most  of  the  Irish  gentry  also  displayed 
their  charity  either  by  remitting  their  rents  or  by  working 
upon  the  various  Relief  Committees. 

The  Great  Famine  (1845-1847)  led  to  many  important 
changes  in  the  condition  of  the  Irish  people.  For  a  time 
it  increased  the  sufferings  of  the  poorer  classes,  who,  for 
fear  of  starvation,  began  to  emigrate  to  America  in  such 
large  numbers  that  the  population,  which  then  stood  at 
eight-and-a-half  millions,  soon  fell  to  below  five  million 
inhabitants.  It  also  struck  a  heavy  blow  at  the  landlords, 
many  of  whom  lost  their  rents  and  became  bankrupt. 

In  1846  the  old  Corn  Laws  were  repealed,  and  all 
foreign  and  American  grain  was  allowed  to  come  into 
Great  Britain  free.  This  was  of  service  at  the  actual  time 
of  the  famine,  but  later  on  it  led  to  the  depression  of 
agriculture,  as  it  deprived  Ireland  of  an  advantage  in  the 
English  market. 

A  great  deal  of  attention  now  began  to  be  given  to  the 
Irish  land  problem.  In  1848,  to  enable  bankrupt  landlords 
to  get  rid  of  their  lands,  the  Encumbered  Estates  Act  was 
passed,  which  set  up  a  Court  of  Sales  in  Dublin.  The 
new  purchasers,  however,  were  often  harsher  and  more 
unpopular  landlords  than  the  old.  They  were  generally 
business  men  or  small  shopkeepers,  and  they  exacted 
heavier  rents,  and  insisted  on  prompt  payment. 

In  1850  a  Tenant  Right  League  was  formed  to  try  and 
gain  for  the  tenant  what  were  afterwards  known  as  the 
'Three  F.'s  '  namely,  (i)  a  fair  rent  to  be  fixed  by  arbitra- 
tion, or  by  the  State,  (2)  fixity  of  tenure  so  long  as  the  fair 
rent  was  paid,  (3)  freedom  of  sale,  or  the  right  to  sell  a 
farm  and  keep  the  purchase  money. 

Mr.  Gladstone's  Land  Act  of  1870  recognised  the  Tenant 
Right  of  Ulster  as  legal,  and  obliged  the  landlords  to  give 
compensation  for  tenants'  improvements,  or  for  eviction 


IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION.  1 23 

for  any  reason  except  the  non-payment  of  rent.  By  a 
clause  in  that  Act,  tenants  who  wished  to  buy  their  lands 
might  borrow  a  part  of  the  purchase  money  from  the 
State.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  scheme  to  turn  all 
Irish  peasants  into  proprietors,  which  has  since  been  carried 
out  by  the  various  Land  Purchase  Acts. 

In  1879  bad  harvests  had  caused  more  poverty,  evictions 
and  discontent,  and  the  Land  League  was  founded  by 
Michael  Davitt,  the  son  of  a  Mayo  peasant.  Its  aim  was 
to  improve  the  position  of  the  tenant.  Charles  Stewart 
Parnell  was  elected  President  of  the  League.  Those  who 
took  the  land  of  an  evicted  tenant  were  shunned  ;  trades- 
men refused  to  sell  them  anything,  nor  could  they  find 
anyone  to  work  for  them.  This  they  called  Boycotting, 
from  the  name  of  the  first  victim,  a  Captain  Boycott,  in 
Mayo. 

In  1881  Gladstone's  Second  Land  Act  was  passed. 
The  Act  recognised  the  '  Three  F.'s.'  The  tenants  were 
given  the  right  to  a  free  sale  of  their  holdings,  and  fixity 
of  tenure  so  long  as  they  paid  their  rents.  Landlords 
and  tenants  might  arrange  for  a  '  fair  rent '  between 
themselves,  but  if  they  could  not  agree,  land  courts,  which 
were  set  up  for  the  purpose,  were  to  mediate  between  them. 
The  rents  decided  upon  by  the  courts  were  not  to  be 
altered  for  fifteen  years,  and  as  long  as  they  were  paid 
the  tenants  could  not  be  evicted. 

Yet  evictions  were  still  going  on,  and  there  was  great 
distress  in  the  country  ;  landlords  were  murdered,  and  there 
were  many  crimes.  Parnell  and  others  advised  the  people 
to  pay  no  rents,  whereupon  the  Government  put  him 
into  prison  for  several  months.  On  the  6th  May,  1882, 
Lord  Frederick  Cavendish,  the  Chief  Secretary,  and  Mr. 
Thomas  Burke,  the  Under-Secretary,  were  murdered 
in  Phcenix  Park  by  a  party  of  violent  men.  The  English 
people  were  much  shocked,  Ireland  was  placed  under  police 
rule,  and  no  more  reforms  were  cur^^ated  for  some  years. 


124  IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION, 

In  1885  Lord  Salisbury's  Government  passed  the  first 
of  the  Land  Purchase  Acts,  known  as  the  Ashbourne 
Act.  The  aim  of  the  Act  was  to  abolish  landlordism 
gradually  in  Ireland,  and  to  help  the  tenants  to  become 
the  owners  of  their  own  lands,  for  it  was  thought  that  if 
the  peasants  became  their  own  landlords  they  would  be 
more  likely  to  place  themselves  upon  the  side  of  law  and 
orderly  rule.  By  this  Act,  and  by  Mr.  Balfour's  Act  of 
1891,  other  large  sums  were  lent.  The  peasants  borrowed 
the  money,  which  they  paid  back  in  instalments,  the  land 
becoming  their  own  after  a  certain  number  of  years. 

Mr.  Wyndham's  Act,  passed  in  1903,  provided  another 
large  loan,  together  with  a  certain  sum  out  of  which  a 
bonus  or  free  grant  is  made  to  the  landlords  according 
to  the  amount  of  the  purchase.  This  bonus  was  provided 
to  induce  landlords  to  sell. 

The  Irish  tenant  can  no  longer  be  evicted  at  will,  because 
he  has  a  right  to  his  holding.  If  he  does  not  agree  with 
his  landlord  about  the  rent,  the  Court  of  the  Irish  Land 
Commission  fixes  a  fair  amount.  Again,  if  he  wishes 
to  buy  his  land,  the  State  is  ready  to  lend  him  a  sum  on 
easy  terms,  and  he  knows  for  certain  what  the  annual 
instalment  will  be  for  years  to  come.  He  is  thus  encou- 
raged to  make  what  he  can  from  his  lands,  and  already  he 
is  becoming  more  thrifty  and  prosperous. 

In  1891   the  Congested  Districts  Board  was  established 

by  the  Government  to  deal  with  the  extreme  poverty  of 

the  people  in  certain  districts  of  the  West.*     The  Board 

encourages  farming  and  industry,  and  has  done  much  for 

the    enlargement    and    improvement    of    small    holdings. 

Besides  other  useful  work  it  assists  tenants  to  build  new 

houses,  and  constructs  bridges,  roads,  piers,  and  fences  ; 

it  also  promotes  sea  fisheries  and  cottage  industries  of  all 

kinds. 

*  The  Congested  Districts  are  : — Donegal,  Leitrim,  Sligo, Roscommon, 
Mayo,  Galway,  Kerry,  and  part  of  Cork  and  Clare. 


IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION.  1 25 

In  1S94  the  Agricultural  Organisation  Society  was 
founded  by  Sir  Horace  Plunkett  to  encourage  co-operation 
or  union  between  Irish  farmers  in  order  that  they  may 
improve  their  trade,  and  work  in  the  best  way,  and  with 
the  best  materials. 

In  1899  the  Department  of  Agriculture  was  started  to 
give  further  encouragement  to  agriculture  and  industry, 
and  to  provide  technical  instruction. 

In  the  nineteenth  century  great  reforms  were  carried 
out  all  over  Europe.  Many  reforms  were  made  in  England, 
and  English  statesmen  have  given  a  great  deal  of  attention 
to  Ireland,  and  have  done  what  they  could  to  remove  the 
old  grievances  of  the  people. 

3.     HOME    RULE. 

The  first  protest  against  the  Union  was  the  revolt  of 
Robert  Emmet  in  1803.  He  and  his  followers,  like  the 
United  Irishmen,  believed  in  the  principles  of  the  French 
Revolution,  and  wished  for  an  Irish  Republic. 

Twenty  years  later  Daniel  O'Connell  became  the  leader 
of  another  movement  to  break  up  the  Union.  He  founded 
a  Repeal  Association,  and  held  great  meetings  all  over  the 
country  to  rouse  the  people.  UnHke  Emmet,  he  did  not 
believe  in  actually  using  force,  but  his  language  was  so 
violent  that  the  Government  prohibited  his  meetings,  and 
he  himself  was  arrested.  From  this  time  forward  he  lost 
much  of  his  influence  with  the  people.  It  is  said  that  the 
great  famine  of  1846-7,  which  brought  so  much  misery  to 
Ireland,  broke  O'Connell's  heart.  He  died  at  Genoa  in 
1847. 

Soon  after,  another  movement  arose  among  a  number  of 
enthusiastic  young  men  who  wished  to  go  much  further  than 
O'Connell,  desiring  to  see  Ireland  cut  off  from  England  and 
recognised  as  a  separate  nation.  All  over  Europe  similar 
efforts  were  being  made  to  secure  national  independence, 


126  IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION. 

or  democratic  reforms.  The  chief  members  of  the 
*  Young  Ireland  '  party  were — ^John  Mitchel,  Thomas 
Davis,  Fintan  Lalor,  Charles  Gavan  Duffy,  and  William 
Smith  O'Brien.  They  did  not  approve  of  O'Connell's 
idea  of  winning  separation  through  peace,  but  were  pre- 
pared to  use  force  if  force  was  required.  They  put  forward 
their  view^s  in  the  *  Nation  '  newspaper,  and  they  did  what 
they  could  to  raise  up  a  national  spirit  by  a  study  of  Irish 
history  and  literature.  Some  of  the  party  tried  to  raise  a 
rebellion  ;  bodies  of  men  were  enrolled  under  the  old 
revolutionary  name  of  '  National  Guards,'  firearms  were 
collected,  and  the  Castle  was  to  be  attacked.  But  as  the 
priests  favoured  peaceful  methods,  and  as  the  people  gave 
them  little  support,  their  efforts  were  a  failure.  The 
Government  arrested  the  leaders,  and  caused  them  to  be 
transported. 

In  1857  James  Stephens  founded  the  Society  of  the 
Fenian  Brotherhood.  The  members  were  mostly  Irish- 
Americans  who  had  emigrated  from  Ireland,  and  who 
sympathised  with  the  movement  against  the  Union. 
Large  funds  were  collected,  and  many  of  the  Irish  soldiers 
who  had  fought  in  the  American  Civil  War  determined  to 
bring  about  a  rising  in  Ireland.  The  Fenians  were  all 
bound  together  by  a  secret  oath,  but  there  were  informers 
amongst  them,  and  the  Government  knew  of  everything 
that  was  going  on.  Nothing  came  of  the  plot  in  Ireland 
itself,  but  a  scheme  was  laid  in  1867  to  seize  Chester  Castle, 
and  in  an  attempt  to  rescue  two  Fenian  prisoners  from 
a  prison  van  in  Manchester  a  policeman  was  shot  ;  there  was 
also  another  attempt  to  blow  up  Clerkenwell  prison  in 
London.  All  this  drew  the  attention  of  the  English  people 
to  Irish  grievances,  and  it  was  shortly  afterwards  that  the 
Anglican  Church  was  disestablished  and  that  the  Land 
Act  of  1870  was  passed. 

What  is  now  known  as  the  Home  Rule  Movement  was 


IRELAND  SINCE  THE  UNION.  1 27 

set  on  foot  by  Isaac  Butt,  who  created  an  Irish  Home 
Rule  League  in  1872.  Butt  and  his  party  did  not  wish 
for  a  repeal  of  the  Union,  but  for  a  Parliament  which  should 
sit  in  Dublin  and  manage  purely  Irish  affairs.  He  brought 
the  question  again  and  again  before  the  House  of  Commons, 
but  he  was  always  outvoted,  and  his  efforts  came  to  nothing. 

Charles  Stewart  Parnell  then  came  to  the  front  as  the 
leader  of  the  Home  Rulers,  who  now  formed  a  definite 
party,  which  gradually  came  to  include  most  of  the  Irish 
members  of  Parliament.  He  organised  the  party,  and 
taught  it  to  vote  solidly  together.  On  every  possible 
occasion  he  and  his  followers  hampered  parliamentary 
business  by  speeches  or  by  forcing  a  vote.  This  process 
was  known  as  *  obstruction,'  and  Parnell  used  it  to  force 
the  House  of  Commons  to  give  full  attention  to  Irish 
affairs.  As  we  have  seen,  Parnell  was  also  keenly  inter- 
ested in  the  land  question,  and  so  he  had  the  peasants 
on  his  side.  He  won  the  sympathies  of  the  Irish  in 
America,  who  sent  over  large  sums  of  money  for  his 
cause. 

^'  A  number  of  English  Liberals  now  began  to  think  that 
Ireland  ought  to  have  Home  Rule,  and  in  1886  Mr. 
Gladstone  introduced  his  first  Home  Rule  Bill.  Irish 
members  were  no  longer  to  attend  at  Westminster,  and  a 
Parliament  was  to  sit  in  Dublin  and  to  legislate  upon 
nearly  all  matters  which  related  to  Ireland.  This  Bill 
was  defeated  in  the  House  of  Commons. 

In  1888  a  violent  letter  appeared  in  the  London  '  Times,' 
which  made  excuses  for  the  Phoenix  Park  murders.  The 
letter  was  beUeved  to  have  been  written  by  Parnell  (as  it 
had  his  name  attached  to  it),  and  did  him  much  harm  in 
England,  but  it  was  afterwards  discovered  to  be  a  forgery. 

In  1889  it  became  known  that  Parnell's  private  Hfe  was 
blemished,  and  he  lost  favour  with  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church  and  with  a  large  part  of  the  people.  He  died 
soon  afterwards,  in  1891. 


128  IRELAND   SINCE  THE   UNION. 

Another  Home  Rule  Bill  was  introduced  by  Mr. 
Gladstone  in  1893.  Instead  of  an  Irish  Parliament  with 
one  house,  there  were  to  be  two  houses  as  in  England  ; 
a  Legislative  Council,  which  corresponded  to  the  House 
of  Lords,  and  a  Legislative  Assembly  similar  to  the  House 
of  Commons.  The  Irish  members  at  Westminster  were 
to  be  reduced  in  number.  This  Bill  was  passed  by  a  small 
majority  in  the  House  of  Commons,  but  was  thrown  out 
by  the  Lords.  Nothing  was  then  heard  of  Home  Rule  till 
the  defeat  of  the  Unionist  Party  in  1906. 

The  Liberals  have  since  then  made  Home  Rule  for 
Ireland  a  part  of  their  programme,  while  the  Conservatives 
have  supported  the  cause  of  all  those  in  Ireland  who  wish 
to  remain  in  close  connection  with  England,  and  who 
believe  in  preserving  the  Union  not  only  for  the  good  of 
their  country,  but  of  the  whole  Empire. 

The  chief  provisions  of  the  Home  Rule  Bill  introduced 
by  Mr.  Asquith  on  April  12th,  1912,  are  as  follows  : — 

1.  The  Irish  Parliament,  sitting  in  Dublin,  is  to  consist 
of  two  houses — a  Senate  and  a  House  of  Commons. 
It  is  to  deal  with  most  matters  relating  to  Ireland.  The 
Army  and  Navy,  the  collection  of  taxes,  the  Post  Office 
Savings  Bank,  foreign  affairs.  Old  Age  Pensions  and 
National  Insurance,  the  Land  Purchase  Scheme,  etc., 
are  to  be  under  the  authority  of  the  Imperial  Parliament, 
which  has  the  supreme  power.  The  number  of  Irish 
members  at  Westminster  (a  hundred  and  three)  is  to  be 
reduced  to  forty- two. 

2.  The  government  of  Ireland  is  to  be  administered 
through  the  Lord  Lieutenant  and  a  number  of  Irish 
ministers,  who  are  to  preside  over  various  departments 
of  State  like  the  members  of  the  English  Cabinet,  ana 
to  be  responsible  to  the  Irish  Parliament. 

3.  All  taxes  levied  in  Ireland  are  to  be  paid  into  the 
Exchequer  of  the  United  Kingdom  ;    but  an  annual  sum, 


IRELAND   SINCE   THE  UNIOr^.  1 29 

called  the  '  Transferred  Sum,'  is  to  be  paid  out  of  that 
Exchequer  to  the  Irish  Exchequer  for  the  expenses  of 
Irish  government.  This  transferred  sum  is  to  be  made 
up  of, 

(a)  The  equivalent  of  the  cost  of  Irish  services  at  the 

time  of  the  passing  of  the  Bill. 
{b)  ^500,000,    which    is    gradually    to    be    reduced    to 

£200,000. 
(c)  The  proceeds  of  any  taxes  imposed  by  the  Irish 
Parliament. 


£30  A  SHORT  LIST  OF  AUTHORITIES. 

A  SHORT  LIST   OF   AUTHORITIES. 


I.  WORKS  OF  REFERENCE. 

The   Cambridge    Modem   History   (all   the   chapters 

relating  to  Ireland  and  Bibliographies). 
The  Political  History  of  England  (ed.  Hunt  and  Poole). 
Dictionary  of  National  Biography. 
'     Encyclopasdia  Britannica. 
English  Plistorical  Review. 

H.  HISTORIES. 

Walpole,  Sir  C.  G. — ;Short  History  of  Ireland. 

RiCHEY,  A.  G. — Short  History  of  the  Irish  People 
down  to  the  Plantation  of  Ulster. 

Joyce,  P.  V^. — Short  History  of  Ireland. 

Morris,  W.  O'Connor. — Ireland,  1494-1905  (Cam- 
bridge Historical  Series). 

Bryce,  Viscount  (ed.). — Tv/o  Centuries  of  Irish 
History  (i 691 -1870). 

Falkiner,  C.  L. — Essa5^s  Relating  to  Ireland. 

Green,  Mrs.  J.  R.— "  Irish  Nationality."  Plome 
University  Library  Series. 

Lane-Poole,  Stanley. ^-Articles  in  Special  Course 
Magazine,  of  the  National  Home  Reading  Union, 
1912-14. 

III.     FROM    THE    EARLIEST    TIMES     TO     THE 
ANGLO-NORMAN  INVASION -1172. 
Hull,  Eleanor. — Pagan  Ireland ;  also,  Early  Christian 

Ireland. 
Rhys,  Sir  J.— Studies  in  Early  Irish  History. 
Bury,  J.  B.— Life  of  St.  Patrick. 
Meyer,    Kuno.— Learning    in    Ireland   in   the    Fifth 
Century. 


A  SHORT  LIST  OF  AUTHORITIES.  I3I 

Todd,  J.  H.  (ed.).— The  War  of  the  Gaedhil  with  the 

Gaill  (Rolls  Series). 
Stokes,  G.  T. — Ireland  and  the  Celtic  Church. 
ZiMMER,    H. — The    Celtic    Church    in    Britain    and 

Ireland. 
Stokes,  Margaret. — Early  Christian  Art  in  Ireland. 
RoLLESTON,   T.   W.---Myths   and   Early  Legends   of 

the  Celtic  Race. 
Maine,  Sir  H. — Early  History  of  Institutions. 
Skene,  W.  F.— Celtic  Scotland. 

Joyce,  P.  W. — ^A  Social  History  of  Ancient  Ireland, 
^  2  vols. 

IV.    FROM  THE  ANGLO-NORMAN  INVASION  TO 

TUDOR  PERIOD,  1 172-1485. 

GiR ALDUS,  Cambrensis. — (Trans.  Bohn  Series). 
Barnard,    F.    P.    (ed.). — Strongbow's    Conquest    of 

Ireland.     (Extracts  from  contemporary  writers.) 
Orpen,  Goddard. — Ireland  under  the  Normans  (1169- 

1216),  2  vols. 
Davis,  H.  W.  C. — ^England  under  the  Normans. 
Ardill,  J.  R. — Forgotten  Facts  of  Irish  History. 
Hardiman,  J. — The  Statute  of  Kilkenny. 

V.    THE  TUDOR  PERIOD,  1485-1603. 
Bagwell,  R. — Ireland  under  the  Tudors,  3  vols. 
DuNLOP,  R. — Henry  VIII. 's  Irish  PoUcy. 
Wilson,     Philip. — The     Beginnings     of     Modern 

Ireland. 
Morley,    H.    (ed.). — Ireland    under    Elizabeth    and 

James    I.     (Described    by    Edmund    Spenser,    Sir 

John  Davies,  and  by  Fynes  Morrison). 
Froude,  J.  A. — History  of  England. 
Allingham,    H. — Captain    Cuellar's    Adventures    in 

Connacht  and  Ulster,  a.d.  1588. 


1^2  A  SHORT  LIST  OF  AUTHORITIES. 

VL  THE  STUART  INTERREGNUM  AND  STUART 
RESTORATION    PERIODS,    1603-1689. 

Bagwell,  R. — Ireland  under  the  Stuarts,  2  vols. 
Gardiner,    S.    R.— History    of    England,     1603-42 

(chapters  dealing  with  Irish  affairs). 
Mahaffy,  J.  P. — An  Epoch  in  Irish  History,  1591- 

1660. 
O'Brien,    R.    B.    (ed.). — Studies    in    Irish    History, 

1603-49. 
Croker,  T.  C.  (ed.). — Narratives  Illustrative  of  the 

Contests  in  Ireland  in  1641  and  1690. 
HiCKSON,  Mary. — The  Irish  Massacres  of  1641, 2  vols. 
DuNLOP,    R. — Ireland    under    the     Commonwealth, 

2  vols. 
Gilbert,  Sir  J.  (ed.). — A  Jacobite  Narrative  of  the 

War  in  Ireland  (1688-91). 
O'Kelly,  C— The  Jacobite  War  in  Ireland  (1688-91). 
Ranke,  L.  von. — A  History  of  England,  principally 

in  the  Seventeenth  Century. 
Duffy,  Sir  C.  G.  (ed.).— The  Patriot  Parliament  of 

1689. 
Carte. — ^Life  of  Ormond  (Introduction). 
Macaulay. — History  of  England. 
Murray,     R.     H. — Revolutionary     Ireland     and    its 

Settlement. 

VII.    FROM  THE    ACCESSION  OF  WILLIAM  III. 
TO   THE   UNION   WITH   ENGLAND,   1689- 1800. 
Lecky,  W.  E.  H. — History  of  Ireland  in  the  Eigh- 
teenth Century,  5  vols. 
Froude,  J.  A. — The  English  in  Ireland  in  the  Eigh- 
teenth Century,  3  vols. 
Young,  Arthur. — Tour  in  Ireland  (1776-79). 
Daly-  J.  B. — Ireland  in  the  Days  of  Dean  Swift. 


A  SHORT  LIST  OF  AUTHORITIES.  1 33 

Gordon,  Rev.  J. — History  of  the  Irish  Rebellion  in 
1798,  etc. 

Wolfe  Tone,  Theobald. — The  Journals  and  Auto- 
biography. 

Murray,  A.  E. — ^A  History  of  the  Commercial  and 
Financial  Relations  between  England  and  Ireland. 

Ball,  Rt.  Hon.  J.  T. — Historical  Review  of  the 
Legislative  Systems  operative  in  Ireland  (1172- 
1800). 

VIII.    FROM    THE    UNION    TO    THE    PRESENT 

DAY,  1 800- 19 14. 

Morris,  W.  O'Connor. — Ireland,  1798-1898. 
Chart,  D.  A. — Ireland  from  the  Union  to   Catholic 

Emancipation ,    1 800- 1829. 
Lecky,  W.  E.  H. — Leaders  of  Public  Opinion  in  Ireland, 

2  vols. 
Dunlop,  R. — Daniel  O'Connell. 
O'Brien,  W.  P.— The  Great  Famine  in  Ireland. 
Trevelyan,  Sir  Charles. — The  Irish  Crisis  (article 

dealing  with  the  Famine  in  "  Edinburgh  Review," 

Vol.  87.     1848). 
O'Brien,  R.  B.— Life  of  Parnell. 
Duffy,  Sir  C.  G. — ^Young  Ireland,  2  vols. 
MoRLEY,  Lord. — Life  of  Gladstone. 
Montgomery,  W. — History    of     Land     Tenure     in 

Ireland. 
Hobson,  S.  G. — Irish  Home  Rule. 
Balfour,  Rt.  Hon.  A.  J. — Asp-ects  of  Home  Rule. 
Dubois,  L.  Paul .7— Contemporary   Ireland. 
Plunkett,  Sir  Horace. — Ireland  in  the  New  Century. 
Ireland    of    To-day. — (Articles    reprinted    in    book 

form   from   the    special    Irish    Number    of   "  The 

Times,"  March  17th,  191 3.) 


Date  Due 

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